18 hours ago
Epic trial of Erin Patterson will drag on into its ninth week as judge continues his final address before sending the jury out to decide her fate
The judge presiding over the epic trial of Erin Patterson has told jurors they can expect to hear at least another full day of his address before he finally sequesters them.
On Tuesday, Justice Christopher Beale told jurors not to pack their toothbrushes just yet as he intended to continue directing them on important matters of law before they retire to decide their verdict.
The jury has been told they will be sequestered at the conclusion of the trial, meaning they will be shielded from the outside world for as long as it takes for them to decide Patterson's fate.
Patterson, 50, has pleaded not guilty to the murders of Don and Gail Patterson, and Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson.
They died after consuming death cap mushrooms served in beef Wellingtons during lunch at her Leongatha home on July 29, 2023.
Only Pastor Ian Wilkinson survived the lunch, with a charge of attempted murder also hanging over Patterson's head.
In what has been an intense 36 day trial, the jury was treated to a spot of humour on Tuesday when Justice Beale referred to a doctor as 'Dr Mushroom'.
The mistake brought the rare sounds of laughter from within a courtroom that has heard weeks of harrowing evidence.
Justice Beale had been trying to refer to Dr Laura Muldoon, who gave evidence during the trial that she asked Patterson whether she used wild mushrooms in the beef Wellingtons she served at the lunch.
'Ms Patterson said she thinks she told Dr Mushroom, ah Muldoon, she had not used wild mushrooms,' Justice Beale said.
In what is referred to as the 'judge's charge', Justice Beale spent much of the day reminding the jury about what it had heard dating back to the very first witnesses in the trial.
Simon Patterson had been the first witness to enter the witness box, with Justice Beale reminding the jury about the key points of his evidence.
Justice Beale discussed Patterson's relationship with her husband over the years
The jury heard Simon said his friendship with Patterson had been 'strong' until late-2022.
He later said the lunch invite came off the back of information related to a 'medical issue'.
Simon told the jury Patterson had wanted to talk about 'this serious matter' at the lunch.
Justice Beale said Simon had been challenged on his recollection of the matter being described as 'important' or 'serious'.
The jury heard Simon had not used those words in his police statement.
Justice Beale also took the jury back through the evidence of Pastor Ian Wilkinson who survived the lunch after spending a period in intensive care.
The jury heard Mr Wilkinson said he remembered being invited to the lunch after a discussion with Gail and Don Patterson.
Justice Beale said Mr Wilkinson told the jury he thought the beef Wellingtons were on an oven tray and he had told police the same.
The jury was reminded about what Mr Wilkinson said about Patterson's cancer claims.
The pastor had told police Patterson said she had 'suspected cancer'.
He then gave evidence he thought she said she had cancer.
'I think she was saying she had cancer,' he said at trial.
Justice Beale continued to take the jury through evidence supplied from everyone from health officials to child protection officers who dealt with Patterson in the days following the lunch.
He told the jury the prosecution wanted him to highlight the eight 'topics' of alleged inconsistent statements.
The topics Justice Beale listed included:
1. Whether Patterson had a tendency to pick and eat wild mushrooms between 2020 and 2023.
2. Whether the children were invited to or free to attend the lunch on July 29.
3. The source of the mushrooms that went into the beef Wellingtons.
4. How much the accused ate of her beef Wellington.
5. How much Gail Patterson ate of her beef Wellington.
6. When Patterson claimed she started to experience diarrhoea.
7. Whether she knew or suspected the lunch was the cause of Don and Gail's illness only in the evening of Sunday July 30, 2023. and
8. Whether the accused knew that Donald and Gail Patterson were in comas by the morning of Tuesday, August 1, 2023.
The jury was reminded about Patterson's claims that she had developed an interest in foraging during Victoria's Covid lockdowns.
Justice Beale said Patterson claimed she would put the mushrooms in meals 'we all ate'.
Patterson told the jury she'd chop up the mushrooms into such small pieces the kids couldn't pick them out.
She claimed she foraged at the Korumburra botanical gardens and at her property.
Patterson claimed to have picked wild mushrooms at the gardens including slippery jacks and honey mushrooms.
Justice Beale lectured the the jury on how to treat someone that made an 'inconsistent statement'.
The jury was also told it 'could use which ever version of the account they wished'.
'[If a] witness' prior statement is inconsistent with his or her evidence in court, you will have two different accounts from the same witness,' Justice Beale said.
'It is for you to determine which accounts, if any, to believe.'
The trial continues.
