Lies a 'stupid knee-jerk reaction': mushroom meal murder-accused
Erin Patterson says her lies to police after cooking a deadly meal for her estranged husband's family were a "stupid knee-jerk reaction" to finding out people had become sick.
The accused triple murderer, 50, entered the witness box for a fourth day before a Supreme Court jury on Thursday.
She has pleaded not guilty to the murder of her former in-laws Don and Gail Patterson, 70, and Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson, 66, and the attempted murder of Heather's husband Ian.
All three died in hospital days after eating death cap mushroom-laced beef Wellingtons in July 2023, at her Leongatha home in regional Victoria.
Defence barrister Colin Mandy SC finished his examination in chief of Patterson on Thursday morning by asking about her lies to police.
Citing her police interview on August 5, 2023, he asked Patterson if she had lied to police about never having dehydrated food and denying ownership of a dehydrator.
"Were those lies?" Mr Mandy asked.
"Yes," Patterson replied.
He then asked her why she lied to Victoria Police detectives about the dehydrator.
"I had disposed of it a few days earlier in the context of thinking that maybe mushrooms that I'd foraged for the meal I prepared was responsible for making people sick," Patterson said.
After police told her Gail Patterson and Heather Wilkinson had died, during a search of her home before the interview, she had a "stupid knee-jerk reaction to just dig deeper and keep lying".
"I was just scared, but I shouldn't have done it," Patterson told the court.
He asked Patterson if her answer to police that she had "never" foraged for mushrooms was also a lie.
"Yes, they were both lies," she replied.
Mr Mandy then asked if she intended to kill or cause serious injury to each of her lunch guests by serving them poisonous beef Wellingtons.
"No, I didn't," she replied.
When asked if she intended to harm them, she said no.
Crown prosecutor Nanette Rogers SC began her cross-examination of Patterson before midday and went straight into her lies.
She put to Patterson that she had disposed of a food dehydrator because she had been using it to dehydrate death cap mushrooms.
"I didn't know that I'd done that," Patterson said.
Dr Rogers then accused Patterson of having "rushed out" of Monash Hospital, the day after she was released, to get rid of evidence.
"No," Patterson said.
"You lied to police about never owning a dehydrator because you had used the dehydrator to prepare death cap mushrooms to include in the lunch," Dr Rogers continued.
"No, I didn't know that," Patterson replied.
"You lied because you knew if you told police the truth it would implicate you in the deliberate poisoning of your four lunch guests," Dr Rogers said.
Patterson responded: "No, no, it's not true."
As the trial nears the end of week six, Justice Christopher Beale told the jury he could not put a figure on how much longer it would go for but they should make arrangements.
He said Patterson may be in the witness box into early next week, and the trial would not sit on Monday, which is a public holiday in Victoria.
After this, he said there would be some legal discussions without the jury, and then there could be "more evidence".
Closing addresses from the prosecution and defence will follow, and could each take "a couple of days" before he gives directions to the jury, which could take another couple of days.
"Then the boot is on the other foot because none of you can tell me how long you will be in deliberations. Take all the time you need," Justice Beale said.
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