Australia - 3 dead after eating wild mushrooms, Leongatha, Victoria, Aug 2023 #13 *Arrest*

[MsMarple]

1m ago06.25 BST
Rogers asks if Patterson accepts there were no digital records on the Cooler Master computer relating to edible or non-toxic mushrooms.

“No,” says Patterson.

Rogers says on 5 August 2023 police seized books from Patterson’s house. She says there was no book about foraging seized by police.

Patterson says on 5 August 2023 when police searched her house she had other books in storage.

 

[MrJ]

Another break!

Key Event
1m ago
Questions on foraging continues before another break is called

By Joseph Dunstan

Dr Rogers recaps that Ms Patterson has told the trial that in the past she has foraged for field, horse, slippery jack and honey mushroom varieties.

She says a prosecutor's case was served on Ms Patterson's lawyers in March 2024 and included articles on mushrooms.

"The four species of mushrooms you claim to have foraged, I suggest each of those four species are referred to in the research articles provided to you by the prosecution," Dr Rogers says.

"I don't know about that," Ms Patterson replies.

"Do you say you haven't read those articles?" Dr Rogers asks.

"I haven't been provided with all of the disclosure and I haven't read everything in the brief," Ms Patterson says.

"I suggest that when you told the jury about foraging [the four mushroom varieties] that that was something you'd learned from the research articles," Dr Rogers says.

There's an objection from Ms Patterson's defence and Justice Beale calls for the afternoon break in the hearing.

 

[Detechtive]

Usually she is disagreeing with what Dr Rogers put to her HOWEVER Dr Rogers is going with things in evidence, thus things testified to by other people.

She has said Simon is wrong, Ian is wrong, Heather's recollection was wrong, her kids were both wrong, the doctors and nurses were wrong, the CPS worker was wrong, the paramedic was wrong,

The cops are wrong, her friends are wrong - she even said that Tom "Funky Tom" the mycologist expert was wrong.

 

[Scooby-Doo]

Her defence is getting nervous!

 

[L_B]

"I haven't been provided with all of the disclosure and I haven't read everything in the brief," Ms Patterson says.

is this something a defendant is meant to have been provided, or just leave it up to your lawyers?

 

[Detechtive]

“The purpose of buying the dehydrator was to dehydrate death cap mushrooms,” Rogers said. Patterson disagreed.

Rogers suggested that Patterson did not chop up the death cap mushrooms she used, but dehydrated them and blitzed them into a powder.

Rogers: I suggest that you blitzed the [death cap] mushrooms into a powder to hide them. Agree or disagree?

Patterson: Disagree.

Rogers: Just as you’ve been hiding powdery regular mushrooms in the muffins you gave to [your daughter] to see if she could notice them.

Patterson: I did do that once.

I seem to recall some testimony where she was "hiding dried mushrooms in everything" (brownies, muffins, etc). Anybody else recall this or am I hallucinating?

 

[Cliff Hardy]

Her defence is getting nervous!

Rightly so. Her barb wire canoe isn't faring well in the surf.

 

[lazymaiden07]

Key Event
Just now
More questions on foraging

By Joseph Dunstan

Dr Rogers then takes Ms Patterson to phone messages between Ms Patterson and her estranged husband Simon Patterson, over an 18-month period.

"There is not a single message about you picking wild mushrooms, do you agree with that?" Dr Rogers asks.

"I haven't done my own keyword search on that ... but I'm prepared to accept that it's true, if you say that," Ms Patterson says.

bbm. the snark is annoying me

Me too. You're not answering questions at the Korumburra pub, you're in a court of law! She doesn't have to like Dr Rogers, but show some respect.

 

[L_B]

I seem to recall some testimony where she was "hiding dried mushrooms in everything" (brownies, muffins, etc). Anybody else recall this or am I hallucinating?

Back from 5th May:

Erin Patterson told friends she'd been 'hiding powdered mushrooms in everything', court hears

Erin Patterson "seemed to really like mushrooms", her friends say, and shared pictures of a food dehydrator in the lead-up to a deadly lunch hosted at her home.

www.abc.net.au

In one message shown to the court, before the deadly lunch, Ms Patterson wrote: "I've been hiding powdered mushrooms in everything. Mixed it into chocolate brownies yesterday, the kids had no idea."

 

[MsMarple]

2m ago06.38 BST
Rogers says Patterson gave evidence that her children “definitely saw” her when she went mushroom foraging.

Patterson says she would not announce “I’m going mushroom picking” to her children. She says it was something she did on walks.

In pre-recorded video evidence, Patterson’s son said he was not aware of his mother foraging for mushrooms.

“I suggest [your son] never knew you to go foraging, because foraging for non-toxic mushrooms was not something you did,” Rogers says. He recalled one time his mother took a photo of a mushroom while they were on a walk.

“Disagree,” Patterson says.

Patterson’s daughter said she had never seen mushrooms when on walks with her mother and her brother. Patterson says her daughter’s evidence is contradicted by her son’s evidence.

“I suggest your children never knew you to pick wild mushrooms,” Rogers says.

“Disagree,” says Patterson.

Rogers says Patterson did not “go foraging for non-toxic mushrooms”.

“Disagree,” Patterson says.

“This is a story you have made up for this jury,” Rogers says.

“Disagree,” Patterson says.

 

[Detechtive]

Back from 5th May:

Erin Patterson told friends she'd been 'hiding powdered mushrooms in everything', court hears

Erin Patterson "seemed to really like mushrooms", her friends say, and shared pictures of a food dehydrator in the lead-up to a deadly lunch hosted at her home.

www.abc.net.au

In one message shown to the court, before the deadly lunch, Ms Patterson wrote: "I've been hiding powdered mushrooms in everything. Mixed it into chocolate brownies yesterday, the kids had no idea."

Wonderful, thank you!

 

[MrJ]

Seriously, why lie. What is the point.

Key Event
3m ago
Erin is shown images of mushrooms in her dehydrator

By Joseph Dunstan

The hearing's back and the prosecution has taken the court to a photo of the dehydrator, with what appear to be mushroom pieces on the racks.

It was taken on April 30, 2023, two days after Ms Patterson had bought the Sunbeam food dehydrator.

Dr Rogers puts to Ms Patterson that she was testing the dehydrator by dehydrating the button mushrooms.

"I don't really understand the question. I dehydrated the mushrooms to eat them," Ms Patterson says.

Another image dated May 4, 2023 is shown to the court. It shows mushroom pieces on a tray from the dehydrator, balanced over scales.

The prosecutor suggests that these mushrooms are death cap mushrooms and Ms Patterson dehydrated them after practicing on the button mushrooms because she didn't want to waste her death caps.

Ms Patterson disagrees.

 

[Bats]

I still wish you would explain your point of view further. Some, admittedly very few of us, believe that she might be innocent - in the very loosest form of the word.
You can always say innocent until proven guilty, which is certainly true (legally).
But I would still like to hear your thoughts on this.

I think she is fielding the questioning very well. To me it's very obvious she has stuck to a plan that she and her team have worked out. The prosecution are trying every angle to get at her but she is returning serve most, if not every time.

Regarding disagreeing with certain questions...
As an example, Erin's son testified that he saw her drinking a cup of coffee. She had said, no it wasn't a coffee it was a herbal tea (or something along those lines).
Erin doesn’t think her son is a liar or lying in the testimony he gave. She has not been saying to Dr Rogers, "no, that's a lie". She has a different version to tell, that's all.

 

[Detechtive]

is this something a defendant is meant to have been provided, or just leave it up to your lawyers?

The brief is served on Erin's lawyers, and Erin is entitled to read it all, and could have, if she wanted to. I have absolutely no doubt that she did. In fact, I know for certain she read the brief because she told one of her friends about who the prosecution witnesses were from their police statements in the brief.

If for whatever reason she didn't read the complete brief, that is her problem. She would have been provided it in full, or could have been if she wanted it.

 

[lazymaiden07]

Usually she is disagreeing with what Dr Rogers put to her HOWEVER Dr Rogers is going with things in evidence, thus things testified to by other people.

She has said Simon is wrong, Ian is wrong, Heather's recollection was wrong, her kids were both wrong, the doctors and nurses were wrong, the CPS worker was wrong, the paramedic was wrong,

The cops are wrong, her friends are wrong - she even said that Tom "Funky Tom" the mycologist expert was wrong

The prosecution have to use some version of this in their closing statement, surely....when it is collated like this, it's very damning.

 

[katydid23]

No , not even with a patients permission. But you can document very well what ever conversations you have , even verbatim

Right. And if you thought a patient's life was at risk, and her children's lives at possible risk, and she wanted to leave the hospital, wouldn't you make note of those conversations in her chart?

When she says the nurse and the doctor are mistaken and they didnt have that conversation about her children, I am thinking the doctors and nurses would have timed/dated notations about those specific conversations since that is such an important topic. I'm hoping the prosecution brings proof like that forward.

Don't the medical staff need to protect themselves by making notes about those warnings they made?

 

[MrJ]

Key Event
3m ago
More questions on foraging

By Joseph Dunstan

Dr Rogers puts to Ms Patterson that her claim she had foraged for mushrooms was a lie she'd come up with to "to try and explain why you put foraged death cap mushrooms in the meal you served up".

"You realised, I suggest, that your previous claim about buying mushrooms from an Asian grocer didn't fit the evidence against you ... at some point you realised the lie you told police about not foraging for wild mushrooms did not stack up," Dr Rogers says.

Ms Patterson disagrees with those propositions.

 

[Sillybilly]

Hey everyone,

We are pleased to let you know that Detechtive has been verified as a friend of Erin Patterson's.

As a Verified member, they are not required to provide links to MSM to back up what they share in this discussion about their friendship with Erin.

Please be polite and respectful to Detechtive at all times. You may ask them questions but if they do not answer or can not answer for whatever reason, please respect that and do not badger them for information.

Thank you to Detechtive and to all other members who are here to discuss this case.

 

[Detechtive]

35 minutes ago

Questioning turns to the books found in Erin's home​

The jury has re-entered the courtroom after half an hour.

Dr Rogers asks Erin the question again.
“Do you accept that there were no records located on that computer relating to edible or non-toxic mushrooms?” Dr Rogers asks.
“No,” she replies.
Dr Rogers then moves to the books located in Erin’s house by police on August 5, adding that more than 400 books were catalogued.
“I think I’ve got a lot more than that,” she replies.
She agrees that “probably” none of those books were about foraging.
But she tells the court she had not unpacked all her books by August 5.
“I still had a lot of books in tubs in my garage,” she says.
Erin explains that she took the books out the tubs over August, September and October 2023 and there are “currently hundreds more books in my house”.
Dr Rogers then takes her to the evidence of her children, who told investigators they did not recall picking mushrooms with their mum.
Dr Rogers: I suggest your children never knew you to pick wild mushrooms, agree or disagree?
Erin: Disagree.
Dr Rogers: This is a story you have made up for this jury, agree or disagree?
Erin: Disagree.

 

[MrJ]

<modsnip: sub judice>

Key Event
1m ago
Erin concedes Melbourne clinic did not offer gastric-bypass surgery

By Joseph Dunstan

The prosecutor then turns to Ms Patterson's earlier evidence that she had an appointment in September 2023 at ENRICH Clinic in Melbourne about gastric-bypass surgery.

Ms Patterson had told the court she didn't disclose this to the lunch guests because she was embarrassed, but let them believe there was treatment she might require for cervical cancer in the future, so she knew they'd be there to help with the kids if she underwent a surgery.

Dr Rogers says yesterday, she put to Ms Patterson that the cosmetic clinic does not offer gastric-bypass procedures.

The prosecutor then notes Ms Patterson has been given a statement from ENRICH Clinic dated yesterday, which outlined some records relating to her.

Ms Patterson then says she accepts that the clinic doesn't offer and has never offered gastric-bypass surgery, pre-surgery appointments related to it, and only conducts procedures related to the skin and its appendages, such as hair and nails.