Erin Patterson murder trial live: Accused continues giving evidence in mushroom case
The Supreme Court hearing of Erin Patterson is now in its seventh week in the regional Victorian town of Morwell.
She's pleaded not guilty to murdering three relatives and the attempted murder of a fourth by serving them a beef Wellington meal that contained poisonous death cap mushrooms.
Follow the proceedings in our blog as they happen.
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The Advertiser
an hour ago
- The Advertiser
'He's dead bro', GP murder accused says after stabbing
A panicked teenager allegedly told friends he only realised the knife he used to stab a doctor to death "was actually going in" after two strikes. The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has pleaded not guilty to one count of murdering GP Ash Gordon and guilty to two counts of aggravated burglary after breaking into his home. The accused had attended a house house party in Doncaster, in Melbourne's northeast on January 12, 2024, when just after 4am the next day, he and another boy decided to "take" a black Mercedes they had seen at a home down the road, prosecutor Kristie Churchill told a Supreme Court jury on Thursday. The pair walked over to the residence, where inside the three-story townhouse and asleep in their rooms were Dr Gordon and his housemate on the first and third floors, respectively. The pair broke in by sliding under the garage door before stealing shoes, headphones, laptops and silver necklaces belonging to Dr Gordon. Upon returning to their friend's house, the boys "boasted about things they stole" and planned to return again, the prosecutor said. Two more teens joined the pair, with the four captured on CCTV wearing gloves, balaclavas, face masks and hats. The prosector alleged they again slipped under the garage door but this time, they don't go undetected. "Hello boys," Dr Gordon said, after being awoken by the intruders, prompting the teens to run outside. The GP's housemate had told him they should call police but Dr Gordon said, "We'll call them later. We need to get our stuff back". After catching up with three of the teens outside his driveway, two of them jumped the fence, leaving the accused who the GP attempted to restrain, the prosecutor said. During the scuffle, the teen allegedly pulled out a knife and inflicted 11 sharp injuries, leaving the victim laying on the ground. "One of those penetrated Dr Gordon's chest cavity which killed him," Ms Churchill said. Two teens jumped back over the fence after the accused yelled for help before one allegedly kicked the victim in the face so forcefully that his "eyes rolled into the back of his head". After fleeing, the panicked accused allegedly told the others he had "stabbed a guy" four to five times. "Shit, just killed a guy. Like he's dead bro," the accused allegedly said. "The first two times I stabbed him I didn't realise (the knife) was going in. After the next few times I realised it was actually going in." On January 14, the accused and two others met up at an apartment in Melbourne's inner-south, where they discussed fleeing the country and no snitching. Three days later, police attended the apartment and arrested the accused, where they also found a silver chain allegedly belonging to Dr Gordon. Defence barrister Amelia Beech urged the jury to look at the evidence and approach the trial as if it was a "task of the mind, not a task of the heart". Ms Beech accepted jury members may have heard about the issue of youth crime in Victoria and how it has become "political fodder". She said the case was just about what happened between Dr Gordon and the accused at 5.27am on 13 January, 2024. "You can't send a message to the attorney-general or the premier here in this court," she said. The trial continues. A panicked teenager allegedly told friends he only realised the knife he used to stab a doctor to death "was actually going in" after two strikes. The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has pleaded not guilty to one count of murdering GP Ash Gordon and guilty to two counts of aggravated burglary after breaking into his home. The accused had attended a house house party in Doncaster, in Melbourne's northeast on January 12, 2024, when just after 4am the next day, he and another boy decided to "take" a black Mercedes they had seen at a home down the road, prosecutor Kristie Churchill told a Supreme Court jury on Thursday. The pair walked over to the residence, where inside the three-story townhouse and asleep in their rooms were Dr Gordon and his housemate on the first and third floors, respectively. The pair broke in by sliding under the garage door before stealing shoes, headphones, laptops and silver necklaces belonging to Dr Gordon. Upon returning to their friend's house, the boys "boasted about things they stole" and planned to return again, the prosecutor said. Two more teens joined the pair, with the four captured on CCTV wearing gloves, balaclavas, face masks and hats. The prosector alleged they again slipped under the garage door but this time, they don't go undetected. "Hello boys," Dr Gordon said, after being awoken by the intruders, prompting the teens to run outside. The GP's housemate had told him they should call police but Dr Gordon said, "We'll call them later. We need to get our stuff back". After catching up with three of the teens outside his driveway, two of them jumped the fence, leaving the accused who the GP attempted to restrain, the prosecutor said. During the scuffle, the teen allegedly pulled out a knife and inflicted 11 sharp injuries, leaving the victim laying on the ground. "One of those penetrated Dr Gordon's chest cavity which killed him," Ms Churchill said. Two teens jumped back over the fence after the accused yelled for help before one allegedly kicked the victim in the face so forcefully that his "eyes rolled into the back of his head". After fleeing, the panicked accused allegedly told the others he had "stabbed a guy" four to five times. "Shit, just killed a guy. Like he's dead bro," the accused allegedly said. "The first two times I stabbed him I didn't realise (the knife) was going in. After the next few times I realised it was actually going in." On January 14, the accused and two others met up at an apartment in Melbourne's inner-south, where they discussed fleeing the country and no snitching. Three days later, police attended the apartment and arrested the accused, where they also found a silver chain allegedly belonging to Dr Gordon. Defence barrister Amelia Beech urged the jury to look at the evidence and approach the trial as if it was a "task of the mind, not a task of the heart". Ms Beech accepted jury members may have heard about the issue of youth crime in Victoria and how it has become "political fodder". She said the case was just about what happened between Dr Gordon and the accused at 5.27am on 13 January, 2024. "You can't send a message to the attorney-general or the premier here in this court," she said. The trial continues. A panicked teenager allegedly told friends he only realised the knife he used to stab a doctor to death "was actually going in" after two strikes. The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has pleaded not guilty to one count of murdering GP Ash Gordon and guilty to two counts of aggravated burglary after breaking into his home. The accused had attended a house house party in Doncaster, in Melbourne's northeast on January 12, 2024, when just after 4am the next day, he and another boy decided to "take" a black Mercedes they had seen at a home down the road, prosecutor Kristie Churchill told a Supreme Court jury on Thursday. The pair walked over to the residence, where inside the three-story townhouse and asleep in their rooms were Dr Gordon and his housemate on the first and third floors, respectively. The pair broke in by sliding under the garage door before stealing shoes, headphones, laptops and silver necklaces belonging to Dr Gordon. Upon returning to their friend's house, the boys "boasted about things they stole" and planned to return again, the prosecutor said. Two more teens joined the pair, with the four captured on CCTV wearing gloves, balaclavas, face masks and hats. The prosector alleged they again slipped under the garage door but this time, they don't go undetected. "Hello boys," Dr Gordon said, after being awoken by the intruders, prompting the teens to run outside. The GP's housemate had told him they should call police but Dr Gordon said, "We'll call them later. We need to get our stuff back". After catching up with three of the teens outside his driveway, two of them jumped the fence, leaving the accused who the GP attempted to restrain, the prosecutor said. During the scuffle, the teen allegedly pulled out a knife and inflicted 11 sharp injuries, leaving the victim laying on the ground. "One of those penetrated Dr Gordon's chest cavity which killed him," Ms Churchill said. Two teens jumped back over the fence after the accused yelled for help before one allegedly kicked the victim in the face so forcefully that his "eyes rolled into the back of his head". After fleeing, the panicked accused allegedly told the others he had "stabbed a guy" four to five times. "Shit, just killed a guy. Like he's dead bro," the accused allegedly said. "The first two times I stabbed him I didn't realise (the knife) was going in. After the next few times I realised it was actually going in." On January 14, the accused and two others met up at an apartment in Melbourne's inner-south, where they discussed fleeing the country and no snitching. Three days later, police attended the apartment and arrested the accused, where they also found a silver chain allegedly belonging to Dr Gordon. Defence barrister Amelia Beech urged the jury to look at the evidence and approach the trial as if it was a "task of the mind, not a task of the heart". Ms Beech accepted jury members may have heard about the issue of youth crime in Victoria and how it has become "political fodder". She said the case was just about what happened between Dr Gordon and the accused at 5.27am on 13 January, 2024. "You can't send a message to the attorney-general or the premier here in this court," she said. The trial continues. A panicked teenager allegedly told friends he only realised the knife he used to stab a doctor to death "was actually going in" after two strikes. The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has pleaded not guilty to one count of murdering GP Ash Gordon and guilty to two counts of aggravated burglary after breaking into his home. The accused had attended a house house party in Doncaster, in Melbourne's northeast on January 12, 2024, when just after 4am the next day, he and another boy decided to "take" a black Mercedes they had seen at a home down the road, prosecutor Kristie Churchill told a Supreme Court jury on Thursday. The pair walked over to the residence, where inside the three-story townhouse and asleep in their rooms were Dr Gordon and his housemate on the first and third floors, respectively. The pair broke in by sliding under the garage door before stealing shoes, headphones, laptops and silver necklaces belonging to Dr Gordon. Upon returning to their friend's house, the boys "boasted about things they stole" and planned to return again, the prosecutor said. Two more teens joined the pair, with the four captured on CCTV wearing gloves, balaclavas, face masks and hats. The prosector alleged they again slipped under the garage door but this time, they don't go undetected. "Hello boys," Dr Gordon said, after being awoken by the intruders, prompting the teens to run outside. The GP's housemate had told him they should call police but Dr Gordon said, "We'll call them later. We need to get our stuff back". After catching up with three of the teens outside his driveway, two of them jumped the fence, leaving the accused who the GP attempted to restrain, the prosecutor said. During the scuffle, the teen allegedly pulled out a knife and inflicted 11 sharp injuries, leaving the victim laying on the ground. "One of those penetrated Dr Gordon's chest cavity which killed him," Ms Churchill said. Two teens jumped back over the fence after the accused yelled for help before one allegedly kicked the victim in the face so forcefully that his "eyes rolled into the back of his head". After fleeing, the panicked accused allegedly told the others he had "stabbed a guy" four to five times. "Shit, just killed a guy. Like he's dead bro," the accused allegedly said. "The first two times I stabbed him I didn't realise (the knife) was going in. After the next few times I realised it was actually going in." On January 14, the accused and two others met up at an apartment in Melbourne's inner-south, where they discussed fleeing the country and no snitching. Three days later, police attended the apartment and arrested the accused, where they also found a silver chain allegedly belonging to Dr Gordon. Defence barrister Amelia Beech urged the jury to look at the evidence and approach the trial as if it was a "task of the mind, not a task of the heart". Ms Beech accepted jury members may have heard about the issue of youth crime in Victoria and how it has become "political fodder". She said the case was just about what happened between Dr Gordon and the accused at 5.27am on 13 January, 2024. "You can't send a message to the attorney-general or the premier here in this court," she said. The trial continues.
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
Linda Reynolds targets former Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus in Higgins lawsuit
Linda Reynolds has turned her attention to former Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus in her bid to sue the Commonwealth over its compensation payment to Brittany Higgins, as the nation's anti-corruption agency revealed there was 'no corruption issue' in the payment. The retiring former Liberal minister in May launched action in the Federal Court against the Commonwealth, with the crux of the claim over the $2.4m compensation payment to Brittany Higgins in 2022. Senator Reynolds argued the payment was 'publicly affirming' of Ms Higgins allegations against her that she didn't support her former staffer when she alleged she was raped by Bruce Lehrmann. The Federal Court has found Mr Lehrmann raped Ms Higgins on the civil standard of the balance of probabilities. A criminal trial was aborted due juror misconduct and a charge against him was dropped. Mr Lehrmann has always denied the allegation and is appealing the Federal Court's finding. An amended version of Ms Reynolds statement of claim was filed on Wednesday, just a day before the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) said there was 'no corruption issue' in the $2.4m payment. The NACC on Thursday announced there was 'no evidence that the settlement process, including the legal advice provided, who was present at the mediation, or the amount was subject to any improper influence by any Commonwealth public official'. Senator Reynolds' amended statement of claim was made public late on Thursday afternoon. Among the changes is a reference to a speech by Mr Dreyfus the then Attorney-General made to parliament on March 15, 2021. Mr Dreyfus is not a party to the claim. Mr Dreyfus recounted to the House of Representatives a speech by Ms Higgins just outside Parliament House, where she told a large crowd she was raped inside the building by a colleague, and how her story was 'a painful reminder to women that it can happen in Parliament House and can truly happen anywhere'. 'If a woman cannot feel safe from rape in Parliament House, a veritable fortress ringed with security cameras, with entrances protected by armed guards and with Federal Police officers on duty inside, where can women feel safe?' Mr Dreyfus told the House of Representatives, according to a transcript excerpt in the claim. 'How strong is the rule of law if it isn't able to protect a young woman working in the ministerial wing of Parliament House?' The amended statement of claim argued Senator Reynolds had suffered loss and damage as a result of Mr Dreyfus' conduct, including denying her the opportunity to rebut Ms Higgins' allegation 'in the appropriate forum'. It also argues Mr Dreyfus 'enabled and encouraged the falsity of Ms Higgins' claim to be maintained by Ms Higgins'. HWL Ebsworth, which acted on the Commonwealth's behalf, is also being sued by Senator Reynolds for negligence. Lawyers on behalf of Senator Reynolds argued HWLE breached its fiduciary duty to her by excluding her from the mediation conference where the $2.4m settlement was reached, and failing to conduct independent investigations to establish if there was 'at least a meaningful prospect of liability' by Ms Higgins. However, similar alleged breaches initially put forth against the Commonwealth were withdrawn in the amended document, with it now largely focusing on allegations of Mr Dreyfus' misfeasance of public office and alleged breaches of HWLE. Mr Dreyfus has been contacted for comment. He earlier welcomed NACC's statement. 'The NACC has conclusively found there was no improper interference by any Commonwealth official at any stage,' Mr Dreyfus said. 'I regret the baseless allegation of corruption has been so widely publicised ahead of this finding and hope future matters can be resolved in a more timely manner. 'I also regret any further distress caused to Ms Higgins as a result of this matter.'
The Age
an hour ago
- The Age
‘He's full dead, bro': Distressing final moments of stabbing death of doctor aired in court
A teenager told his friends 'just killed a guy. Like, he's dead bro', after stabbing a Melbourne doctor in the driveway of a Doncaster street. The then-16-year-old had broken into the Doncaster home of doctor Ashley Gordon twice in one night to steal shoes, jewellery and electronics. The teenager also allegedly showed the bloodied knife to friends before saying he needed to burn his clothes, a court has heard. The now 17-year-old, who cannot be named due to his age, has pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated burglary and not guilty to a charge of murder. On the first day of the trial into the 33-year-old's alleged murder, distressing details of the doctor's final moments, and the two home invasions that preceded his death, were aired in the Supreme Court. The court heard the boy and his co-accused, who was also 16 at the time, had been drinking at a friend's party at a house in the same street as Gordon's home on the evening of January 12 last year. The other, now 17-year-old boy, has also been charged over Gordon's death and will face a separate trial. The hearing was told in the early hours of January 13 the two teenage boys began talking about stealing a black Mercedes they had seen parked in Gordon's garage. The court was told that some time after 3am the teenage boy, and his co-accused left the party and walked to Gordon's home, which he shared with his lifelong friend, Tristen Standing.
