Erin Patterson: Australian accused in mushroom murders disputes accounts of fatal lunch
SYDNEY, June 10 (Reuters) - An Australian woman accused of the murder of three elderly relatives of her estranged husband by feeding them poisonous mushrooms disputed on Tuesday accounts of the fatal lunch given by other witnesses, a court heard.
Erin Patterson, 50, is charged with the July 2023 murders of her mother-in-law Gail Patterson, father-in-law Donald Patterson and Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson, along with the attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson, Heather's husband.
The prosecution accuses her of knowingly serving the guests the death caps as part of a Beef Wellington at her home in Leongatha, a town of about 6,000 people some 135 km (84 miles) from Melbourne.
She denies the charges, which carry a life sentence, with her defence calling the deaths a "terrible accident".
On Patterson's third day of cross-examination, prosecution lawyer Nanette Rogers asked whether she had lied about serving herself on a plate of a different colour from those of her guests, which the prosecution says she did to avoid the poison.
"I suggest that this description that you gave to the jury of the plates you used at the lunch is a lie. Correct or incorrect?" Rogers said.
"Incorrect," the accused replied.
In his evidence, Ian Wilkinson, the sole surviving guest from the lunch, whose recovery took months in hospital, had said Patterson served herself on a plate of a different colour.
Patterson's estranged husband, Simon Patterson, previously testified that Heather Wilkinson had remarked on the different coloured plates before she died.
Erin Patterson also disputed an account by her son, who said in his evidence he had not seen her repeatedly visit the bathroom as a result of also becoming sick after the meal.
The defence's decision to call Erin Patterson as a witness has re-ignited interest in the trial that began in late April.
Media have descended on the town of Morwell where the trial is being held, about two hours east of Melbourne.
State broadcaster ABC's daily podcast on the trial is currently Australia's most popular, while many domestic newspapers have run live blogs.
Patterson is currently in her sixth day of giving evidence and her third day of cross-examination by Rogers.
The prosecution rested its case on June 2 after a month of evidence from relatives and medical, forensic and mushroom experts.
The trial, expected to conclude this month, continues.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
24 minutes ago
- The Sun
Family of tragic Scots dad savagely murdered by ‘cold-blooded' best pal say he should never be freed
THE family of a murdered dad have told of their horror at him being killed by a childhood pal who considered himself a 'cousin'. Relatives of Chris McMahon, 31, found it 'unbelievable' that Stephen Kelly stabbed him in the neck and chest with an 18-inch hunting knife. 5 5 5 He also hit Chris on the head with a bottle, stamped on him and poured bleach into his mouth during a 'sustained' 20-minute attack. Chris's devastated mum, Margaret, 69, said: 'Never in a million years did I think Stephen would have done this to Chris. 'He would come to our house all the time. He was always here having his dinner as a wee boy.' Kelly claimed he killed Chris in the dad-of-two's home in Carluke, Lanarkshire, because he was being 'bullied' by him. But the dead man's older brother John, 37, said: 'He's a coward. He's hit Chris with a bottle to knock him out, then sat on top of him and stabbed him, then poured the bleach. 'That's not someone who has snapped because they were bullied. He's a cold-blooded killer.' Sister Kirsty, 41, said: 'There's two little kids here who will never see their daddy again.' Mum Margaret told how Kelly's mother knocked on her door after the brute called her, topless and covered in blood, to tell her what he had done. She said: 'She told me, 'You better call for help'. 'After I found out I couldn't believe she hadn't told me what happened. But then, maybe she couldn't say it.' Stabbing rampage leaves 11 people injured as witnesses describe horror of 'screams & blood everywhere' in Salem Kelly, of Carluke, was caged for 22 years at the High Court in Kilmarnock on May 28. Following the sentence Chris' parents Margaret, 69, and John 76, along with siblings Kirsty, 41 and John, 37, said they were relieved Kelly had been given life. Kirsty added: "It's been an agonising 19 months for our family, and justice has finally been served. But no sentence would ever be long enough because Chris is never coming back." 5 5
Telegraph
2 hours ago
- Telegraph
Woman ‘beaten to death with mallet by homeless man she took in'
A woman was allegedly battered to death with a mallet by a homeless man she had taken in, a court heard. Victoria Adams, 37, was found dead at her flat in Hammersmith, west London, on Feb 9 after police were called to a report of a man trying to break in to the property in Coulter Road. She was found face down in a bedroom with a black bin bag over her head which was covered by a pillow, the Old Bailey heard. 'Struck with a blunt object' She had suffered at least 10 separate injuries to the back and side of the head from being struck with a blunt object, said Peter Ratliff, prosecuting. Further investigations led to the recovery of a mallet which allegedly had blood and the victim's DNA on it. Apapale Adoum, 39, of no fixed address, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. He was charged with the offence on June 5. It is alleged the victim met him on Feb 6 when he was living in a homeless shelter and had invited him to stay with her but later wrote a note to ask him to leave. On Tuesday, Mr Adoum appeared at the Old Bailey by video-link from Wandsworth Prison for a preliminary hearing and spoke only to confirm him identity. Judge Nigel Lickley KC set a plea hearing for Aug 26 and a provisional three-week trial from March 23 2026. The defendant was remanded into custody.
Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Idaho murders suspect Bryan Kohberger's desperate 'rabbit hole' defense blasted in court filing
Prosecutors in Idaho have fired back at Bryan Kohberger 's 11th-hour attempt to delay his capital murder trial, furiously responding: 'It is time.' The accused killer is due to go on trial this August charged with the murders of Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle, Ethan Chapin and Madison Mogen in a horror knife attack in Moscow, Idaho, on November 13, 2022. In a last-ditch bid to save him from the firing squad, the criminology PhD student's defense has now asked the judge to postpone the trial - citing a recent Dateline episode that revealed bombshell new details and pointed to a potential evidence leak in the case. Now, in a new court filing, the state has pushed back, rubbishing claims a delay would make it easier to seat an impartial jury and blasting the defense for going down 'every rabbit hole.' 'Defendant's Motion amounts to a request for a perpetual continuance so that his counsel can go down every rabbit-hole until Defendant - rather than the Court - deems himself ready for trial,' the filing, from prosecutor Bill Thompson, reads. The state argues that Kohberger's team has had plenty of time to prepare for the trial - coming more than two years after his arrest in the case. 'It is time to try this case. Defendant was arrested in late December of 2022 and was indicted in May of 2023,' the filing states. In the 22-page filing, prosecutors acknowledge that there has been 'intense publicity' surrounding the case and that the Dateline episode does pose 'challenges' to the court. 'There is no doubt that the publicity surrounding this case - including, but not limited to, a recent 'Dateline' TV show containing non-public evidence - poses challenges for the Court and both parties,' the filing reads. '... However, Defendant's reliance on the Dateline episode to support his Motion is misplaced for several reasons.' The court filing argues that whether or not Kohberger has a fair trial depends on whether a fair and impartial jury can be seated - not on how much pretrial publicity there is around the case. 'Here, the Court's carefully crafted jury selection process has every chance to produce an impartial jury... suffice it to say, if an individual has been so impacted by the Dateline episode (or any other publicity) that they cannot be impartial, they will not be seated as a juror,' the filing states. The cases of 'cult mom' Lori Vallow and doomsday author Chad Daybell show that Ada County has recent experience in dealing with high-profile trials, the filing adds. Prosecutors also argue that granting a delay would not reduce the publicity around the case - instead arguing it would 'only allow more opportunities for pretrial publicity' and 'make it harder to seat a jury.' Prosecutors also question the timing of the defense's request, arguing that, since Kohberger's December 2022 arrest, his legal team has managed to meet other deadlines set by the court - including 'by disclosing six expert reports for the penalty phase, disclosing over 2,100 pages of purported mitigation materials, listing 55 penalty phase witnesses, and identifying 132 exhibits he may introduce during the penalty phase of trial.' Young couple Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle were found dead on the second floor of the home 'But now, after all discovery deadlines have passed and after the Court conducted the pre-trial conference, Defendant seeks a trial continuance of unspecified length,' the filing states. The prosecution argues that, based on the court records, Kohberger's team 'has already plowed the necessary ground.' Prosecutors also point out that victims have 'the right to a 'timely disposition' of this case' - with the current timeline indicating the trial will only wrap up around the third anniversary of the murders. The Dateline show, released in early May, revealed new details about the case for the very first time, including the suspected killer's phone records, porn choices and online searches for Ted Bundy. It also aired never-before-seen surveillance footage of a suspect vehicle fleeing the horrific crime scene on November 13, 2022. Days after the show aired, Judge Hippler handed down a scathing court order saying that the release of 'sensitive information' in the episode shows that someone close to the case has 'likely' violated the gag order. He warned that this could make it more difficult to seat an impartial jury when Kohberger goes on trial for his life this August - something that those close to the victims described as 'a distraction.' The judge ordered an investigation into the leak, vowing to root out the source and hold the culprit to account. Both sides were ordered to preserve all records around the case and to hand over a list of names of everyone who might have had access to the information revealed on the show, including staff members, law enforcement officers and defense consultants. Both the defense and prosecution have now handed over these records. Following the apparent leak, the defense cited the show in its argument to postpone the trial. More than two years have passed since the November 13, 2022 murders of the four University of Idaho students. The suspect is accused of breaking into a three-story, off-campus home in the heart of the college town of Moscow and stabbing the four victims to death. Two other roommates survived, with one of them coming face-to-face with the masked killer moments after the attack. Kohberger was arrested around six weeks later on December 30, 2022, at his parents' home in Poconos Mountains in Pennsylvania. He was connected to the murders after his DNA was found on a Ka-Bar leather knife sheath found next to Mogen's body at the scene. Prosecutors also found cellphone records placing him outside the student home multiple times prior to the murders, as well as surveillance footage showing a vehicle matching his car speeding away. If convicted, he faces the death penalty. Jury selection is slated to begin in late July or early August, with the trial getting underway August 11.
