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Jury must ‘cast aside any sympathies or prejudices’
Beale says the jury must cast aside any sympathies or prejudices for people involved in the case.
He says the issue is not if Patterson’s meal caused the fatal consequences but if the prosecution has proved beyond reasonable doubt that she is “criminally responsible” for the consequences.
“The fact Patterson told lies must not cause you to be prejudiced against her,” he says.
He says while “any reasonable person would feel great sympathy” for the Patterson and Wilkinson families, jurors must not be swayed by emotions.
The jury can only consider the evidence presented in the court room, Beale says.
“This case has attracted unprecedented media attention and excited much public comment. If any of that has reached your eyes or ears or does so in the coming days … you must be particularly careful not to let it influence you in any way.”
Beale says if jurors overhear their family or friends express an opinion about the case, they must ignore this.
He says only the jurors have sat in the jury box throughout the trial and heard all the evidence.
“You and you alone are best placed to determine whether the prosecution have proved their case beyond reasonable doubt,” he says.
Latrobe Valley law courts in Morwell, Victoria. Photograph: James Ross/AAPShare
Updated at 21.27 EDT
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Before the jury leaves the room, Beale says: “you don’t need to bring your toothbrush tomorrow”, an indication that they will not be sequestered to consider their verdict until at least Thursday.
Beale will continue his instructions to the jury from 10.30am tomorrow.
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Updated at 02.24 EDT
Judge outlines other evidence in case relating to death cap mushrooms
Beale says jurors should consider Sorell’s evidence in conjunction with other evidence in the trial.
He says the prosecution relies on Sorrell’s evidence, in combination with other evidence, to infer that Patterson sourced death caps from Loch on 28 April to 2023.
The court previously heard that retired pharmacist Christine Mckenzie posted a reported sighting of death cap mushrooms on the citizen science website iNaturalist on 18 April 2023.
Beale outlines the other evidence the prosecution uses to make this inference:
Patterson’s familiarity with the iNaturalist website and alleged visit to it on May 2022 to search a world map of death cap mushrooms.
Patterson purchasing a dehydrator on the same day as the alleged visit.
Patterson photographing wild mushrooms in that dehydrator soon after this date.
Dr Thomas May, a mycologist, said the photograph of wild mushrooms was consistent with death cap mushrooms.
Beale says the defence argues, that in Sorell’s opinion, the phone records are also consistent with Patterson not visiting Loch or Outtrim.
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Updated at 02.01 EDT
Beale outlines ‘limitations’ to telecommunications analysis
Beale turns to the expert evidence of telecommunications expert Dr Matthew Sorell and digital forensics expert Shamen Fox-Henry, from Victoria police’s cybercrime unit.
He says Sorell agreed there were “significant limitations” to his analysis.
Sorell said his conclusions about a “possible visit” to locations of death cap mushroom sightings did not equate to a definitive visit to a postcode, Beale says.
Sorell said data showing a phone’s connection to a base station could not prove a phone was in a particular area without further information.
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Updated at 01.49 EDT
Beale says if the jury accepts a witness made an inconsistent statement they have two options:
1. They can use the prior statement as evidence in the case, even if it’s inconsistent with subsequent testimony.
2. They can use the statement to assess the reliability of the witness.
“It’s for you to determine whether or not to draw this conclusion from any inconsistencies you find,” he says.
He says a witness who has made inconsistent statements has not necessarily lied.
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Updated at 01.16 EDT
Seventh and eighth alleged inconsistencies by Erin Patterson
Beale goes through the final two of eight alleged inconsistencies in Patterson’s evidence:
7. When Patterson suspected the lunch was the cause of Don and Gail’s illness
Patterson said that when she fed her children the leftovers of the meal the day after the lunch she did not suspect that the beef wellington meal caused Don and Gail to become ill. Dr Laura Muldoon’s evidence contradicted this.
8. Whether Patterson knew Don and Gail were in comas by 1 August 2023
Patterson said she did not know her parents in-law were in comas on 1 August 2023. Patterson’s sister-in-law, Tanya Patterson, said Patterson told her she knew that Don and Gail were in induced comas on this date when she visited her in hospital.
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Updated at 01.12 EDT
Fifth and sixth alleged inconsistencies by Erin Patterson
Beale moves on to the following alleged inconsistencies by Patterson:
5. How much Gail ate of her beef wellington
Patterson said Gail did not eat all of her beef wellington. Cripps said Patterson told her Gail ate a half of her beef wellington.
6. When Patterson claimed she started to experience diarrhoea after the lunch
Patterson said she began to feel unwell the evening of the lunch, between 10pm and midnight. Simon said he had a “vague recollection’ Patterson said she began feeling unwell at around 4.30pm on the day of the lunch. He said Patterson told him this the day after the lunch.
Cripps said Patterson told her she began to feel unwell in the evening on the day of the lunch and before she dropped her son’s friend off. Cripps said Patterson recalled staying in the car while dropping her son’s friend home so the seat acted like a “cork” and prevented her from having an accident.
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Updated at 01.01 EDT
Third and fourth alleged inconsistencies by Erin Patterson
Beale outlines the next two alleged inconsistencies by Patterson:
3. The source of mushrooms that went into the beef wellingtons
While testifying, Patterson said she now realised there was a possibility that foraged mushrooms may have been in the Tupperware container which also contained the store-bought dried mushrooms she said she used in the beef wellington meal. She said she realised this was a possibility on 1 August 2023.
Dr Chris Webster said when Patterson first arrived at Leongatha hospital on 31 July 2023 he asked where she got the mushrooms and she gave a “single word response” and said Woolworths.
Simon’s brother, Matthew Patterson, said when he called Patterson on the same day he asked where the mushrooms were sourced from. He said Patterson mentioned fresh mushrooms from Woolworths and dried mushrooms from a Chinese grocer in the Oakleigh area.
Dr Veronica Foote said Patterson told her she bought fresh mushrooms from Safeway in Leongatha and an Asian grocer in Melbourne in the months prior to the lunch.
Beale also touches on the evidence of Dr Laura Muldoon, who spoke to Patterson on 31 July 2023. She said Patterson told her the mushrooms were bought from a Chinese grocery store in Oakleigh or Glen Waverley. Muldoon said Patterson denied using foraged mushrooms.
4. How much Patterson ate of her beef wellington
Patterson said she ate between a “quarter to a third” of her beef wellington. Child protection worker Katrina Cripps said Patterson told her she ate half of her beef wellington.
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Updated at 01.01 EDT
First two of eight alleged inconsistent statements by Erin Patterson
Beale then turns to the eight alleged inconsistent statements by Patterson that the prosecution has raised.
1. Whether she had a tendency to pick and eat wild mushrooms
Patterson told the court her interest in wild fungi began in 2020. She said she consumed mushrooms growing near her house in Korumburra. In Patterson’s formal police interview on 5 August 2023, Patterson was asked if she had foraged mushrooms in the past. She replied: “never”. Beale also points to the evidence of Prof Rhonda Suart who spoke to Patterson at Monash hospital and asked if Patterson had been “mushrooming”. “She said no,” Stuart told the court.
2. Whether Patterson’s children were invited to or free to attend the lunch
Patterson said the day before the lunch her daughter asked her what they were planning to do the following day. She told her the lunch guests were coming over but her brother and his friend were going to the cinemas and her daughter liked the sound of that. Simon gave evidence that when Patterson invited him to the lunch, she told him she was keen for the children to not attend the lunch so they could discuss a “serious” matter.
Patterson’s daughter said her mother wanted to have lunch with Don, Gail, Ian and Heather to discuss “adult stuff”. Patterson’s son said his mother wanted only the adults to attend the lunch.
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Updated at 01.01 EDT
The jurors have returned to the court room in Morwell.
Beale tells the jury the trial will conclude at 3.30pm today due to a legal matter to be discussed between the parties.
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Updated at 00.22 EDT
The court has adjourned for a break.
The trial will resume from 2.15pm.
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Inconsistencies in evidence
Beale continues to outline the inconsistencies in evidence from other witnesses:
Ian Wilkinson
First, Ian’s evidence that the beef wellingtons were served from a tray. Ian told the court he did not see where the beef wellingtons came from. During cross-examination, Ian agreed he told police the beef wellingtons were served on a tray.
Second, Ian’s evidence that Patterson told her lunch guests she had cancer. During cross-examination, the defence said he told police earlier that Erin announced she had a “suspected cancer”. Ian said he thought Patterson was saying she had cancer.
Dr Chris Webster
Beale turns to whether Webster said it was a daily struggle to transfer patients from Leongatha hospital to larger hospitals. When asked about whether this was a struggle for regional hospitals, he disagreed. He later accepted he said this earlier and said it was true.
Tanya Patterson
Beale turns to the topic of whether Tanya noticed a deterioration in the relationship between Erin and Simon Patterson. Tanya testified she said this occurred about 12 months prior to the lunch. In an earlier hearing, she said she noticed this from January 2023. During cross-examination, Tanya agreed she could not give an exact timeframe.
Sally Ann Atkinson
Beale says the inconsistent evidence relates to when Patterson told Atkinson she purchased the dried mushrooms from the Asian grocer and whether Patterson said she used these previously.
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Inconsistencies in five witnesses’ evidence
Beale says both parties have highlighted inconsistencies in the evidence of witnesses compared to statements they had made earlier.
He says there are five witnesses that fall under this category.
He begins with Simon’s evidence.
First, Simon was cross-examined about his prior statement that he considered his relationship with Patterson post-separation to be “strong”. While cross-examined, he said he meant friendship not relationship.
Second, Simon testified that when Patterson invited him to the lunch she told him she wanted to discuss a serious and important medical issue. When cross-examined about this, Simon said he could not remember the exact words Patterson used.
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Updated at 00.00 EDT
Judge says children’s evidence must be approached with caution
Beale returns to a point about tendency evidence.
He says if the jury finds Patterson had a tendency to forage for wild mushrooms and use them in meals, or if they find it is a reasonable possibility, “you may consider it increases the possibility” that the death cap mushrooms accidentally ended up in the beef wellingtons.
Beale says the jury must consider that Patterson’s children were not cross-examined in the trial due to an agreement by both sides.
He says this means they must approach the children’s evidence with caution.
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Updated at 22.46 EDT
Hearsay evidence
Beale tells the jury about the hearsay evidence the trial has heard.
He recalls Simon testifying that the day after the lunch Heather told him Patterson served herself on a different coloured plate. Simon said while driving his aunt and uncle to the hospital, Heather asked whether Paterson was short on crockery.
Simon also gave evidence that his father, Don, said Patterson told the lunch guests she had cancer.
He says Ian testified that Heather remarked that Patterson had a different coloured plate to the guests at the lunch.
Beale says it is up to the jury to determine if Heather made these statements and whether Don said this to Simon.
If they accept this hearsay evidence, they can use it in their deliberations, Beale says.
He says there is a need for caution when considering hearsay evidence from Simon and Ian Wilkinson.
“Their evidence is about statements that were made out of court,” he says.
Beale says these may be unreliable.
Erin Patterson’s estranged husband, Simon, outside Latrobe Valley magistrates court earlier in the trial. Photograph: Martin Keep/AFP/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 22.43 EDT
Defence and prosecution at odds over foraging
Beale says Patterson said her children saw her picking mushrooms. Her children did not recall this when they gave evidence, the court hears.
He says the defence has argued Patterson loved mushrooms and her children not remembering this is because they were young kids. The defence said this did not mean Patterson didn’t forage.
The defence pointed to images of foraged mushrooms in the dehydrator and images of wild mushrooms recovered from the Samsung tablet that police seized from Patterson’s home.
The defence also argued Patterson didn’t hide the fact she bought a dehydrator, instead she broadcast it to her Facebook friends. The defence argued she would not do this if she planned to use it to murder her in-laws.
There was no evidence of Patterson having a motive to kill her lunch guests by poisoning them with death cap mushrooms, the defence said.
The prosecution said Patterson was a self-confessed liar and the only evidence about her foraging habit came from her.
The pictures from the seized SD card was not evidence that Patterson ate the fungi, the prosecution said.
The prosecution also pointed to no messages to her Facebook friends about foraging for mushrooms.
Beale says the jury must take all this evidence into account to determine if Patterson deliberately put death cap mushrooms into the beef wellingtons.
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Updated at 22.38 EDT
Patterson said she bought dried mushrooms from an Asian grocer but due to their strong smell did not include them in the meal she had planned to, Beale says.
She said she put the dried mushrooms she bought from an Asian grocer in the months before the lunch into a Tupperware container that already contained fungi, the court hears.
Patterson has admitted to lying about not foraging for mushrooms and lying to police about not owning a dehydrator.
She testified that she looked up whether death cap mushrooms grew in the South Gippsland region. Patterson said it was possible she searched for this and ended up on an iNaturalist post about death cap mushrooms.
Patterson agreed she told her Facebook friends things about her personal life and what she cooked, including mushrooms. She said she did not know if she discussed foraging and cooking wild mushrooms with them, Beale says.
She said she didn’t lie to Dr Laura Muldoon while at Monash hospital, when asked if she put foraged mushrooms in the beef wellingtons, the court hears.
Patterson says she did pick wild mushrooms in the period ranging from 28 April 2023 to the day of the lunch on 29 July 2023.
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Mushroom foraging
Beale turns to the tendency evidence in the case.
He says the jury has heard evidence from Patterson about her tendency to forage for wild mushrooms.
Patterson said her interest in mushrooms began in 2020 during walks in the first Covid lockdown, the court hears. She said she would buy dried mushrooms to use in cooking from Asian grocery stores while staying in Melbourne during school holidays.
Patterson told the jury she found mushroom Facebook groups and would post photos in these, Beale says.
Patterson said she began consuming wild mushrooms when she was confident what they were. She said the first time was after she discovered one near her home in Korumburra.
Patterson said she bought a dehydrator to preserve mushrooms so she could eat them throughout the year.
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