Erin Patterson trial: Update on trial progress as alleged poisoner poised to return to witness box
The Supreme Court judge overseeing Erin Patterson's triple-murder trial has given jurors an update on what to expect in the coming weeks.
Addressing the 14-person panel about midday on Thursday, Justice Christopher Beale told jurors the trial length had 'probably been on your minds'.
Justice Beale said at the start of Ms Patterson's trial six weeks ago he'd given jurors an estimate of six weeks and, while he would not provide an updated time frame, he would summarise 'how things will play out from here on'.
'It's likely that Ms Patterson will be in the witness box for the rest of the week and probably into early next week,' he said.
'After she has completed giving evidence, it will be necessary, or the law requires it for me to have some legal discussions with the parties.
'And those discussions could take a couple of days.'
Justice Beale said this could see out the hearings next week, which will be a day short due to the King's Birthday public holiday in Victoria.
Justice Beale said the discussion would include whether there is to be any more evidence in the case and what directions of the law would be necessary for him to give at the end of the trial.
After all evidence had been adduced, the judge said the prosecution and defence would deliver their closing addresses which could take a couple of days.
'And then my final directions to you, which involves three parts: giving you directions about legal principles that apply in this case, which takes quite a bit of time; identifying for you the key issues in the case and summarising for you the evidence and arguments in relation to those issues; that also takes a fair time,' Justice Beale said.
'So I haven't put a figure on it, but I have tried to put you in the picture as to how this is going to play out and it may be necessary for you to make some arrangements.'
Following this, Justice Beale said the jurors would be given 'all the time you need' to decide the facts of the case.
Ms Patterson is facing trial after pleading not guilty to the murder of her husband's parents and aunt, and the attempted murder of his uncle.
Don and Gail Patterson, and Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson, died in hospital in the week after eating a beef wellington lunch at Ms Patterson's home on July 29, 2023.
Heather's husband, Ian Wilkinson, survived after spending about a month and a half in hospital.
Prosecutors allege the accused woman deliberately spiked the lunch with death cap mushrooms.
Her defence accepts there were death cap mushrooms in the meal but argues she did not intentionally poison anyone and the case is a 'tragic accident'.
The trial continues.
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Mushroom cook's triple denial as trial grilling ends
Disagree. Disagree. Disagree. Those were Erin Patterson's responses to the prosecution's final three questions in her murder trial. Crown prosecutor Nanette Rogers SC rounded out her marathon cross-examination on Thursday with three suggestions: that Patterson deliberately sourced death cap mushrooms in 2023, deliberately included them in the beef Wellington she served her former in-laws and did so intending to kill them. Patterson has pleaded not guilty to the murders of her estranged husband Simon's parents, Don and Gail Patterson, 70, his aunt Heather Wilkinson, 66, and the attempted murder of Heather's husband Ian. She denies deliberately poisoning her lunch guests on July 29, 2023 when she served them meals that included death cap mushrooms. Patterson was accused of more lies on her eighth and final day in the witness box at the Supreme Court in Morwell in regional Victoria. The 50-year-old was asked about her evidence that she dehydrated dried mushrooms she had bought from an Asian grocer before adding them to the beef Wellingtons. She agreed she never said this to anyone at the time and didn't mention putting the fungi into the dehydrator when she earlier admitted adding them to the lunch. "I suggest this is another lie you made up on the spot," Dr Rogers said, accusing Patterson of hedging her bets to try to make it sound like there were multiple possible sources for the death cap mushrooms. "Incorrect," the accused killer responded. The prosecutor also suggested Patterson lied about taking diarrhoea treatment following the lunch after the 50-year-old earlier claimed one reason she went to hospital was because she thought they would have something stronger. Patterson agreed she did not tell medical staff at the hospital she had taken the medication, maintaining no one asked. "If you were looking for something stronger, you would've told medical staff you had already taken Imodium and it didn't work," Dr Rogers said. "I don't agree," Patterson responded. She was also questioned about her evidence that she had to stop by the side of a road and go to the toilet in the bushes while driving her son to a flying lesson, something the boy denied during his testimony. "I suggest he did not recall you stopping by the bushes on the side of the road because it did not happen ... I suggest this is another lie you told the jury about how you managed the trip to Tyabb," Dr Rogers said. "Disagree," Patterson said. The mother-of-two said she had served her children reheated beef Wellington with the mushroom and pastry scraped off while she had a bowl of cereal the night after the deadly lunch. But Dr Rogers referred to her children's evidence, in which they suggested their mother had the same meal of leftovers the night after the fatal lunch. One of Patterson's children said she "ate the same as us", but Patterson told the court they were incorrect and denied eating the leftover food. She also denied that she "deliberately concealed" one of her phones, referred to at the trial as phone A, from police when they searched her house. Patterson said she switched from phone A to another, referred to as phone B, because the former was "not cutting it anymore". But the prosecution pointed to records that showed regular use from a SIM card in phone A until days after the mushroom lunch. Patterson said she conducted a factory reset of phone B because she wanted to use it and that was the phone she gave police. "I suggest to you that there was nothing wrong with phone A and this is another lie," Dr Rogers said. "Disagree," Patterson responded. Under defence barrister Colin Mandy SC's re-examination, Patterson became emotional as she talked about her daughter's ballet lessons and son's flying lesson. With all evidence in the trial concluded, Justice Christopher Beale told jurors about discussions they could expect before dismissing them for the day.
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Mushroom cook's triple denial as trial grilling ends
Disagree. Disagree. Disagree. Those were Erin Patterson's responses to the prosecution's final three questions in her murder trial. Crown prosecutor Nanette Rogers SC rounded out her marathon cross-examination on Thursday with three suggestions: that Patterson deliberately sourced death cap mushrooms in 2023, deliberately included them in the beef Wellington she served her former in-laws and did so intending to kill them. Patterson has pleaded not guilty to the murders of her estranged husband Simon's parents, Don and Gail Patterson, 70, his aunt Heather Wilkinson, 66, and the attempted murder of Heather's husband Ian. She denies deliberately poisoning her lunch guests on July 29, 2023 when she served them meals that included death cap mushrooms. Patterson was accused of more lies on her eighth and final day in the witness box at the Supreme Court in Morwell in regional Victoria. The 50-year-old was asked about her evidence that she dehydrated dried mushrooms she had bought from an Asian grocer before adding them to the beef Wellingtons. She agreed she never said this to anyone at the time and didn't mention putting the fungi into the dehydrator when she earlier admitted adding them to the lunch. "I suggest this is another lie you made up on the spot," Dr Rogers said, accusing Patterson of hedging her bets to try to make it sound like there were multiple possible sources for the death cap mushrooms. "Incorrect," the accused killer responded. The prosecutor also suggested Patterson lied about taking diarrhoea treatment following the lunch after the 50-year-old earlier claimed one reason she went to hospital was because she thought they would have something stronger. Patterson agreed she did not tell medical staff at the hospital she had taken the medication, maintaining no one asked. "If you were looking for something stronger, you would've told medical staff you had already taken Imodium and it didn't work," Dr Rogers said. "I don't agree," Patterson responded. She was also questioned about her evidence that she had to stop by the side of a road and go to the toilet in the bushes while driving her son to a flying lesson, something the boy denied during his testimony. "I suggest he did not recall you stopping by the bushes on the side of the road because it did not happen ... I suggest this is another lie you told the jury about how you managed the trip to Tyabb," Dr Rogers said. "Disagree," Patterson said. The mother-of-two said she had served her children reheated beef Wellington with the mushroom and pastry scraped off while she had a bowl of cereal the night after the deadly lunch. But Dr Rogers referred to her children's evidence, in which they suggested their mother had the same meal of leftovers the night after the fatal lunch. One of Patterson's children said she "ate the same as us", but Patterson told the court they were incorrect and denied eating the leftover food. She also denied that she "deliberately concealed" one of her phones, referred to at the trial as phone A, from police when they searched her house. Patterson said she switched from phone A to another, referred to as phone B, because the former was "not cutting it anymore". But the prosecution pointed to records that showed regular use from a SIM card in phone A until days after the mushroom lunch. Patterson said she conducted a factory reset of phone B because she wanted to use it and that was the phone she gave police. "I suggest to you that there was nothing wrong with phone A and this is another lie," Dr Rogers said. "Disagree," Patterson responded. Under defence barrister Colin Mandy SC's re-examination, Patterson became emotional as she talked about her daughter's ballet lessons and son's flying lesson. With all evidence in the trial concluded, Justice Christopher Beale told jurors about discussions they could expect before dismissing them for the day.
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