Australia - 3 dead after eating wild mushrooms, Leongatha, Victoria, Aug 2023 #11 *Arrest*

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  • #281
!!

Key Event
1m ago

Erin Patterson to give evidence​

By Melissa Brown​

Erin's lawyer has told the jury that Erin Patterson will given evidence.

He did not say when that will happen.
😳😳😳
 
  • #282
As she is a defense witness, the defense will question her first and then the prosecution has the opportunity to cross examine her, is that right?
Bring on the 🐊 tears...
 
  • #283
2m ago
Initial designs for Erin's Leongatha home were made on Microsoft Paint

By Joseph Dunstan

She's asked about her Leongatha home and her involvement in its creation.

"I was involved right from the beginning of the design ... Simon and I were involved through the whole design process," she says.

"I drew a design first myself in Microsoft Paint and gave that to the building designer and he said 'that will never work engineering-wise, let's move that around a bit'," she says.

“I saw it as the final house, meaning I wanted it to be a house where the children would grow up, where when they moved away for uni or work they could come back and stay whenever they want, bring their children and I’d grow old there. That’s what I hoped.”
 
  • #284
now15.40 AEST
Patterson asked about life before the mushroom lunch

Mandy asks about Patterson’s son’s issues at his previous school.

A reminder that Patterson’s children and their schools cannot be named due to a suppression order.

Mandy asks about the care arrangements for Patterson’s children.

She says they both lived with her full time.

They could see Simon whenever they wanted to and practically what that meant was [our daughter] spent a big part of Saturday afternoon and evenings with Simon.
She says her daughter and Simon sometimes did “extra things” like going to the beach or local pool.

But [our son] was only seeing his dad at church or at youth group.
Patterson says at the start of 2023 she had been accepted into a bachelor of nursing and midwifery at Federation University. But she deferred this due to her daughter’s health issues, Patterson says.

She says this was in control by mid-2023 and she was planning to commence the degree in early 2024.

 
  • #285
3.39pm

‘Nothing but the truth’: Seated on an office chair, Erin talks about life in 2023​

By​

Erin Patterson has stepped into the witness box to start her evidence.

Erin Patterson, 50, is seated on an office chair, behind a wooden box where a computer screen and jug of water can be seen.

She’s swearing an affirmation, shaking her head as she declared “nothing but the truth”.

Defence barrister Colin Mandy, SC, has started by asking her about her life in July 2023.

Erin said that in July 2023, her children had just started settling into their new school.

“They started there the second week of July. They had been there for a couple of weeks,” Patterson said.

She said the children appeared to have settled in OK and quickly made friends.

She said her son hadn’t been there too long to gauge whether he was doing better than at his old school, but she said that the new school appeared to be able to cater to his learning needs.

“The children lived with me full-time and they could see Simon whenever they wanted to,” she said.

She said her daughter often spent Saturday afternoons with her father, but her son only saw him at church or the youth group.

Erin said that at the start of 2023, she had been accepted into a master of Midwifery and Nursing at Federation University, but her daughter had some physical needs that required her to be close.

“We had it under control by the middle of 2023, so I was planning to take that placement at the start of 2024,” she said.

 
  • #286
Key Event
1m ago
Erin's relationships with Simon and parents-in-law

By Joseph Dunstan

In 2023, she was "comfortable financially" in that she could afford to go to university and didn't have to work a full-time job "at the same time".

Mr Mandy asks what wasn't going well in life in July 2023.

“I had felt for some months that my relationship with the wider Patterson family, particularly Don and Gail, had a bit more distance or space put between us, we saw each other less.”

Part of that was because she no longer lived in Korumburra, she says, but she says she began to have "concerns" that Simon didn't want her involved with the family anymore.

"Perhaps I wasn't being invited to so many things," she says, adding that her relationship with Simon was "functional".

"From the start of the year to July, we mainly just related on logistical things like church, the streaming, the kids. But we didn't relate on friend things, banter, like we used to, that changed at the start of the year," she says.
 
  • #287
now15.40 AEST
Patterson asked about life before the mushroom lunch

Mandy asks about Patterson’s son’s issues at his previous school.

A reminder that Patterson’s children and their schools cannot be named due to a suppression order.

Mandy asks about the care arrangements for Patterson’s children.

She says they both lived with her full time.



She says her daughter and Simon sometimes did “extra things” like going to the beach or local pool.



Patterson says at the start of 2023 she had been accepted into a bachelor of nursing and midwifery at Federation University. But she deferred this due to her daughter’s health issues, Patterson says.

She says this was in control by mid-2023 and she was planning to commence the degree in early 2024.

if she was ever my nurse I'd be checking myself out of that hospital quicker than she ever did. At best she accidentally killed 3 people and nearly killed a fourth by poisoning, and by her own defence's argument, then panicked. No way would I ever want her giving me medication of any kind

also didn't she hate hospitals, according to Simon? IIRC? I know not all nurses work in hospitals but you at least need to be in them long enough to qualify
 
  • #288
Key Event
1m ago
Erin says she struggled with self-esteem

By Joseph Dunstan and Melissa Brown

Erin tells the court she struggled with parts of herself.

"I had been fighting a never-ending battle of low self-esteem most of my adult life. And the further inroads I made into being middle aged, the less I felt good about myself, I suppose. Put on my weight, could handle exercise less," she says.

She agrees her low self-esteem she was mainly about her weight and she planned to have gastric bypass surgery.
 
  • #289
if she was ever my nurse I'd be checking myself out of that hospital quicker than she ever did. At best she accidentally killed 3 people and nearly killed a fourth by poisoning, and by her own defence's argument, then panicked. No way would I ever want her giving me medication of any kind
And I imagine she would be the co-worker from hell, look at the way she spoke about the caring nurses & Dr's that were doing their all to save her "loving" family members , all the while doing everything in her power to ensure they all died .....allegedly

:mad:
 
  • #290
Key Event
1m ago
Erin's relationships with Simon and parents-in-law

By Joseph Dunstan

In 2023, she was "comfortable financially" in that she could afford to go to university and didn't have to work a full-time job "at the same time".

Mr Mandy asks what wasn't going well in life in July 2023.

“I had felt for some months that my relationship with the wider Patterson family, particularly Don and Gail, had a bit more distance or space put between us, we saw each other less.”

Part of that was because she no longer lived in Korumburra, she says, but she says she began to have "concerns" that Simon didn't want her involved with the family anymore.

"Perhaps I wasn't being invited to so many things," she says, adding that her relationship with Simon was "functional".

"From the start of the year to July, we mainly just related on logistical things like church, the streaming, the kids. But we didn't relate on friend things, banter, like we used to, that changed at the start of the year," she says.
Oh FGS, couples break up all the time and remain civil for the sake of the children. In no way would anyone expect the relationship to be any closer or warmer than whatever it took to keep the children feeling safe and happy.
 
  • #291
Key Event
1m ago
Erin meets Simon

By Joseph Dunstan

Mr Mandy takes Erin back to when she met Simon Patterson in 2004 at Monash City Council. At the time, Erin tells the court she was employed as an admin officer by the RSPCA, which had the contract to deliver animal services in Monash.

She says they met through "mutual friends" who had lunch at work and they shared after-work drinks.

For a time, she says she and Simon were just friends.

“I would say we became friends around November '04 and we were friends only until July '05, that’s when we started dating.”

Erin says she met Don and Gail Patterson in early 2005.

"Simon wanted to go camping every weekend in 2005 ... I was included in that and one of the trips we did was down to Korumburra in March or April of '05 ... we stayed at Don and Gail's house [that time]," she says.


Key Event
Just now
Erin becomes a Christian

By Joseph Dunstan

She says when she met Simon, she was a "fundamentalist athetist".

"Like I was really very atheist," she says. Meanwhile, Simon was a Christian.

She says while getting to know Simon, they had many conversations about life, religion and politics.

She says she was trying to convert Simon to atheism but "things happened in reverse", and she became a Christian.
 
  • #292
1m ago15.49 AEST

Patterson felt ‘more distance’ in relationship with wider family, court hears​

Patterson is asked about her Leongatha home. She says she “wanted it to be a house where the children grew up”.

She says she wanted to “grow old there.”

“Or I’d hoped,” she says.

Mandy asks Patterson about what was not going well in her life in 2023.

I had felt for some months that my relationship with the wider Patterson family and particularly Don and Gail perhaps had a bit more distance and space between us. We saw each other less.


Partly it was a consequence of I no longer lived in the same town as Don and Gail.”


I’d come to have concerns that Simon was not wanting me to be involved too much in the family. Perhaps I wasn’t being invited to so many things.
Mandy asks Patterson about her relationship with Simon in July 2023. Patterson says it was “functional”.

We didn’t relate on friend things, banter, like we used to. That changed at the start of the year.
He asks how Patterson felt about herself physically in July 2023. She says:

I’d been fighting a never-ending battle of low self-esteem for most of my adult life.
She says she was planning to have gastric bypass at the time of the lunch.

 
  • #293
And I imagine she would be the co-worker from hell, look at the way she spoke about the caring nurses & Dr's that were doing their all to save her "loving" family members , all the while doing everything in her power to ensure they all died .....allegedly

:mad:
Yup, exactly. I know a lot of nurses and have worked in hospitals. Nothing about her strikes me as the nurse type. She may have the book-learning academic capability, but personality wise nothing about her matches the job. Sorry, JMO. And doesn't have anything to do with guilt or not, its just how she presents as a person and what's been talked about in evidence. A job dealing intimately with people at their worst is... not really for her, I don't think
 
  • #294
Key Event
1m ago
Erin says she struggled with self-esteem

By Joseph Dunstan and Melissa Brown

Erin tells the court she struggled with parts of herself.

"I had been fighting a never-ending battle of low self-esteem most of my adult life. And the further inroads I made into being middle aged, the less I felt good about myself, I suppose. Put on my weight, could handle exercise less," she says.

She agrees her low self-esteem she was mainly about her weight and she planned to have gastric bypass surgery.
Boo hoo hoo, is this going to be all about being Erin?
 
  • #295
Key Event
1m ago
Erin recalls having 'a spiritual experience' at a church service

By Joseph Dunstan

Erin recalls being "really excited" to attend a church service during those early months at the Korumburra Baptist Church, led by Pastor Ian Wilkinson.

Erin says as Mr Wilkinson delivered his sermon, a banner behind him read "faith, hope and love".

"And Ian gave a sermon talking about that, there's a passage in the Bible that talks about faith, hope and love and the greatest of these is love," she says.

She says after the service, they had communion and she was welcomed to participate in it.

"I had what can be best described as like a spiritual experience," she says.

"I'd been approaching religion as an intellectual exercise up until that. Does it make sense? Is it rational? But I had what I would call a religious experience there and it quite overwhelmed me."
 
  • #296
now06.52 BST
Patterson asked about early relationship with Simon

Mandy turns to ask Patterson about how she came to meet Simon.

Patterson says the pair met in 2004 when they both worked at the Monash city council. She says she was employed by the RSPCA and based at the Monash city council.

Patterson says the pair were friends from November 2004 to July 2005.

That was when we started dating.
Patterson met Simon’s parents, Don and Gail, in early 2005. She says at the time, Simon wanted to go camping “every weekend”. Patterson says Simon typically went camping with friends outside of work and invited her along on a trip.

While on a camping trip, the group stayed at Don and Gail’s house in Korumburra.

 
  • #297
Quoting myself from previous thread because it's nice being right lol

It won't surprise me if she does, at her own wishes. Fits in with the Agatha Christie plot - the drama, control of the narrative, and possibly still thinking there's opportunity to outwit everyone at the last twist.
 
  • #298
Gastric bypass to go with her ovarian elbow cancer?

Must be why she only ate half of her BW.

JMO
 
  • #299
Key Event
Just now
Erin and Simon announce engagement

By Joseph Dunstan

In either late 2005 or early 2006, Erin says she and Simon started attending Bible study with some of Simon's relatives and friends.

In early 2007, Erin says she and Simon became engaged — and Don and Gail were the first ones to be told.
 
  • #300
what is this, This is Your Life?
 
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