Australia - 3 dead after eating wild mushrooms, Leongatha, Victoria, Aug 2023 #8 *Arrest*

[drsleuth]

Key Event
4m ago

Defence presses Ian Wilkinson about the lunch​

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By Judd Boaz​

Mr Mandy has Ian Wilkinson confirm that when Heather and Gail each grabbed two plates, there was no direction as to who should sit where.

"Anyone one of you, of the four guests, could have sat in any one of those spots?" Mr Mandy says.

"Yes," he says.

Mr Mandy suggests to Mr Wilkinson that there were in fact no grey plates used at all that day.

Ian disagrees and says he remembers there being four grey plates.

He says he did not recall how much Erin ate of her lunch, as attention was drawn otherwise.

"As to whether it was all or some or a very small portion of her plate, you can't say with any real authority?" Mr Mandy says.

"I can't say," Ian says.

Dying lunch guest's 'extremely abnormal' blood test results raised hospital alarm, court hears — as it happened

Ms Patterson is accused of murdering three relatives by serving them a beef Wellington laced with poisonous death cap mushrooms. Follow the trial in our live blog.

www.abc.net.au

 

[drsleuth]

2m ago

Ian Wilkinson questioned about cancer claim​

2m ago​

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Ian Wilkinson's police statement put under a microscope​

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By Judd Boaz​

Mr Mandy drives home the word "suspected", which Ian used in the earlier police statement.​

"I think I was probably understating things," Ian Wilkinson says.

​

"So it wasn't the truth?" Mr Mandy asks.
​

Ian reiterates it wasn't an impression he had formed, but that he definitively believed she had cancer after the lunch.​

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"Erin was fairly clear that the diagnosis was given," he says.​

By Tim Callanan​

Mr Mandy is now taking Mr Wilkinson back to a statement he made in September, 2023 and the "importance" of that statement.

Mr Wilkinson agrees he read over the statement and agreed with everything in it and would taken the opportunity to change anything if he wanted to.

Mr Mandy puts it to Mr Wilkinson that he told police that Erin Patterson said that she had "suspected cancer".

Mr Wilkinson says he thinks she was saying that she thought she had cancer.

"She plainly said that she had some sort of cancer. Her voice was low at that point," he says.

"This was a serious situation."

Dying lunch guest's 'extremely abnormal' blood test results raised hospital alarm, court hears — as it happened

Ms Patterson is accused of murdering three relatives by serving them a beef Wellington laced with poisonous death cap mushrooms. Follow the trial in our live blog.

www.abc.net.au

 

[drsleuth]

1m ago

Testimony of Ian Wilkinson ends​

By Tim Callanan​

The defence lawyer Colin Mandy SC has finished questioning Ian Wilkinson and now it's back to the prosecution.

Prosecutor Jane Warren simply asks Mr Wilkinson to confirm that the lunch conversation about telling the children about the cancer diagnosis was confined to that topic, which he confirms.

This marks the end of Mr Wilkinson's evidence today.

Dying lunch guest's 'extremely abnormal' blood test results raised hospital alarm, court hears — as it happened

Ms Patterson is accused of murdering three relatives by serving them a beef Wellington laced with poisonous death cap mushrooms. Follow the trial in our live blog.

www.abc.net.au

 

[whitelilac]

"So it wasn't the truth?" Mr Mandy asks.​

Mr Mandy ought to be careful with his wording. He's implying that Ian Wilkinson is lying. This could alienate the jury, especially since Wilkinson has presented himself well.

 

[Scooby-Doo]

Dying lunch guest's 'extremely abnormal' blood test results raised hospital alarm, court hears — as it happened

Ms Patterson is accused of murdering three relatives by serving them a beef Wellington laced with poisonous death cap mushrooms. Follow the trial in our live blog.

www.abc.net.au

 

[drsleuth]

Just now

Ambulance worker gives evidence​

By Tim Callanan​

The next witness to appear is Cindy Hyde, who was working as a patient transfer officer with Ambulance Victoria in July, 2023.

She confirms she travelled in an ambulance to Korumburra and attended the home of Don and Gail Patterson.

She says they told her they were ill after eating a meal, which Don Patterson described as "beef stroganoff".

Dying lunch guest's 'extremely abnormal' blood test results raised hospital alarm, court hears — as it happened

Ms Patterson is accused of murdering three relatives by serving them a beef Wellington laced with poisonous death cap mushrooms. Follow the trial in our live blog.

www.abc.net.au

 

[drsleuth]

2.41pm

Under cross-examination, Ian insists there was a single plate of colour in the lunch setting​

By​

After an hour-long lunch break, the jury has returned to court, and Colin Mandy, SC, has resumed his cross-examination of guest Ian Wilkinson about the lunch on July 29, 2023.

Ian told the jury that the guests could sit wherever they wanted. Almost immediately, Mandy moved into a line of questioning about Erin Patterson’s crockery on the day of the lunch and how she’d set the table.

Here’s a little of the cross-examination about the single plate the jury has heard was a different colour to the others:

Mandy: I suggest to you that there was no uniform set of plates that were being used by Erin on that day. That is, there wasn’t a set of four plates that were all the same.

Wilkinson: My memory is that there were four plates that were the same.

Mandy: And let me suggest as well, that there weren’t any gray or stone colored plates in Erin Patterson’s kitchen.

Wilkinson: I remember four gray plates.

Mandy: And likewise, let me suggest this, that there was no smaller plate. All of the plates were the same size.

Wilkinson: The plate was smaller, the different coloured plate.

Mandy: Is it possible that there were two or three plates that were the same and two other different plates?

Wilkinson: No.

Doctor reveals mushroom antidote was in short supply after fatal meal: Trial day six, as it happened

Of the four guests who dined on beef Wellington at Erin Patterson’s house in 2023, only one survived. On Tuesday, that guest – Ian Wilkinson – will tell his story for the first time when he takes the stand as a witness in the cook’s murder trial.

www.theage.com.au

 

[drsleuth]

Just now

Don and Gail seriously ill in their home before being taken to hospital​

By Judd Boaz​

Ms Hyde describes Don and Gail being ill in the house, showing signs of a gastro-type illness.

She says Don was vomiting in the house before they began transporting the couple to hospital via ambulance.

The court heard the journey took around three minutes.

The defence has no questions for Ms Hyde, and she is dismissed.

Dying lunch guest's 'extremely abnormal' blood test results raised hospital alarm, court hears — as it happened

Ms Patterson is accused of murdering three relatives by serving them a beef Wellington laced with poisonous death cap mushrooms. Follow the trial in our live blog.

www.abc.net.au

 

[drsleuth]

1m ago05.45 BST
Ian Wilkinson cross-examined on Erin’s health revelation

Mandy presses Ian about his evidence that Erin told the four lunch guests she had cancer.

Mandy says:

Let me suggest that what you told police when you made your statement is that Erin said she had a suspected cancer.

Ian agrees this is what he told police when making his statement.

When pressed by Mandy about this, Ian says “I think she was saying she had cancer” because she brought up a diagnostic scan which showed a tumor.

Ian says he was “probably understating things” when he made his police statement.

Ian says Erin was “fairly clear that the [cancer] diagnosis was given.”

Mandy says Ian’s police statement did not include references to Erin’s diagnostic test for cancer. Ian says he accepts this.

Mandy has concluded his cross-examination of Ian Wilkinson.

2m ago05.45 BST

The prosecution calls its next witness - Cindy Hyde.​

In July 2023 she was working as a patient transport officer for the Royal Flying Doctor Service Victoria, the court hears. The service was contracted by Ambulance Victoria.

Hyde responded to an ambulance callout for Don and Gail Patterson on 30 July 2023.

The pair told them they had attended a lunch the previous day and had been vomiting from about midnight.

She says her partner asked what they had eaten and Don replied “beef stroganoff.”

Hyde and her partner then transported the pair to Korumburra hospital, the court hears.

There is no cross-examination.

Erin Patterson trial day six – as it happened

This blog is now closed

www.theguardian.com

 

[whitelilac]

2.41pm

Under cross-examination, Ian insists there was a single plate of colour in the lunch setting​

By​

After an hour-long lunch break, the jury has returned to court, and Colin Mandy, SC, has resumed his cross-examination of guest Ian Wilkinson about the lunch on July 29, 2023.

Ian told the jury that the guests could sit wherever they wanted. Almost immediately, Mandy moved into a line of questioning about Erin Patterson’s crockery on the day of the lunch and how she’d set the table.

Here’s a little of the cross-examination about the single plate the jury has heard was a different colour to the others:

Doctor reveals mushroom antidote was in short supply after fatal meal: Trial day six, as it happened

Of the four guests who dined on beef Wellington at Erin Patterson’s house in 2023, only one survived. On Tuesday, that guest – Ian Wilkinson – will tell his story for the first time when he takes the stand as a witness in the cook’s murder trial.

www.theage.com.au

Didn't Heather make mention of the 4 uniform plates and the one odd one? Twice no less. Mr Mandy is taking advantage of the fact that Heather cannot attest to that in court.

 

[drsleuth]

Erin was clear that a cancer diagnosis was given: Ian Wilkinson​

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After discussing Erin Patterson’s crockery collection, Colin Mandy, SC, moves to questioning Ian Wilkinson about his statement to the police on September 19, 2023, in which he said Erin had announced during lunch that she had suspected cancer.

In particular, Mandy focuses on whether Erin said she had been diagnosed with cancer or whether there was a suspected cancer diagnosis.

“She plainly said that she had some sort of cancer. Her voice was low at that point. I couldn’t quite catch exactly what kind of cancer she was naming, but she named a type of cancer. She went on to speak about the scan and that this was a serious, a serious situation, a situation that made her afraid for the future of her kids,” Ian said.

He said Erin did not outline a specific course of treatment.

Asked by Mandy whether he got the feeling that the cancer was still in a diagnostic stage, Ian said he understood the treatment wasn’t yet specified.

“Erin was fairly clear that the diagnosis was given,” Ian said.

Ian said there was some discussion about what to do with the children. “And there was a little bit of discussion about Don’s brother Rob in Botswana, who’s also suffering from cancer,” he said.

Doctor reveals mushroom antidote was in short supply after fatal meal: Trial day six, as it happened

Of the four guests who dined on beef Wellington at Erin Patterson’s house in 2023, only one survived. On Tuesday, that guest – Ian Wilkinson – will tell his story for the first time when he takes the stand as a witness in the cook’s murder trial.

www.theage.com.au

 

[drsleuth]

Korumburra Hospital nurse called to give evidence​

By Judd Boaz​

Nurse Lisa Shannon is up next in the witness box.

Ms Shannon had worked for five years at Korumburra Hospital, which had two beds in its urgent care centre.

The set-up at the hospital means one nurse cares for both patients.

Ms Shannon says at about 10am the day after the lunch, both Don and Gail presented to the urgent care and reported their symptoms.

"Donald was considerably sicker than Gail, on arrival," Ms Shannon says.

"I remained in the urgent care room, couldn't leave because I was quite busy with both of those patients."

She says she needed to assist Don to use the bathroom roughly every 10 minutes.

Don and Gail were both given IV fluids and an ECG was taken, as well as blood tests.

Dying lunch guest's 'extremely abnormal' blood test results raised hospital alarm, court hears — as it happened

Ms Patterson is accused of murdering three relatives by serving them a beef Wellington laced with poisonous death cap mushrooms. Follow the trial in our live blog.

www.abc.net.au

 

[drsleuth]

2.50pm

‘It was just a normal lunch’: Defence barrister finishes his cross-examination​

By​

After the afternoon wears on, Ian Wilkinson’s voice is growing more broken and croaky as he speaks.

The jury heard that as the lunch guests were leaving, there had been nothing out of the ordinary about the discussion on that day.

Defence barrister Colin Mandy, SC, finishes his cross-examination with this statement:

Mandy: It was just a normal lunch.

Wilkinson: Yes.

Ian Wilkinson has finished giving his evidence. He’s taken a seat in the courtroom where a male family member can be seen placing his arm across the pastor’s shoulder.

Doctor reveals mushroom antidote was in short supply after fatal meal: Trial day six, as it happened

Of the four guests who dined on beef Wellington at Erin Patterson’s house in 2023, only one survived. On Tuesday, that guest – Ian Wilkinson – will tell his story for the first time when he takes the stand as a witness in the cook’s murder trial.

www.theage.com.au

 

[drsleuth]

now14.53 AEST
The prosecution has called Lisa Shannon, a registered nurse

In July 2023 she was working as an after hours coordinator at Korumburra hospital and urgent care centre.

She says Don was “considerably sicker” than Gail when the pair arrived. Gail was not vomiting when they arrived, Shannon says.

Don and Gail said they had taken an anti-nausea medication earlier that morning, Shannon says.

Shannon administered a cannula to deliver IV fluids to Don and Gail and ran a blood test using a portable device to measure their electrolyte levels, the court hears.

She says their electrolyte levels were “within normal limits.”

While in the urgent clinic, Shannon accompanied Don to the bathroom every 10 minutes, the court hears.

Don and Gail were then admitted to the ward at the Korumburra hospital to be observed:

“They were requiring one-on-one care. They were very unwell,” Shannon says.

Erin Patterson trial day six – as it happened

This blog is now closed

www.theguardian.com

 

[MrJ]

So much pain and suffering involved, it's just so sad.

 

[drsleuth]

So much pain and suffering involved, it's just so sad.

Absolutely & I wonder what is going thru Erin's mind as she hears about all this suffering?

 

[whitelilac]

‘It was just a normal lunch’​

Mandy says on closing.
Well it obviously was not a normal lunch.
If I were a juror, that would irk me,

 

[drsleuth]

Just now

Don Patterson continues to deteriorate​

​

By Judd Boaz​

Ms Shannon says the deterioration of Donald Patterson was strange given the food poisoning symptoms he had been showing.

"It became obvious that Donald was becoming worse, he was very lethargic, blood pressure was going down a little bit, pulse was going up a little bit," Ms Shannon says.

She tells the court it was clear he was in a worse state than when he arrived.

Ms Shannon says Simon Patterson arrived to see his parents that morning, and she was aware that two other patients had arrived with similar symptoms.

When the results, of i-STAT blood tests returned, Ms Shannon says it was clear something out of the ordinary was occurring with Don.

"In regards to Donald, it was extremely abnormal," she says.

She tells the court that Don had a lactate of 6 [mmol/L], which was indicative of serious health issues such as sepsis or liver damage.

According to the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health, normal lactate levels are less than 1.0 mmol/L in all age groups.

The reading would require transfer to a tertiary hospital with a larger ICU.

Dying lunch guest's 'extremely abnormal' blood test results raised hospital alarm, court hears — as it happened

Ms Patterson is accused of murdering three relatives by serving them a beef Wellington laced with poisonous death cap mushrooms. Follow the trial in our live blog.

www.abc.net.au

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A lactate of 6 is very high!

 

[TootsieFootsie]

Being proud of your new home doesn't mean the same thing as being house-proud.

Also not showing someone through your new home is something that I would do.

I don't like showing off and while I might love my new home, feeling proud of what I own makes me feel uncomfortable.
What I own might make me happy, but I don't feel the need to impress others with what I own.


Maybe Erin felt the same way, hence the reluctance to "show off" the pantry.

 

[drsleuth]

2.59pm

Don told us they’d eaten beef Stroganoff: Royal Flying Doctor staff​

By​

The jury has returned from lunch for the final line of questioning of Ian Wilkinson, the sole surviving guest at the beef Wellington lunch.

The new witness on the stand, Cindy Hyde, was a transport officer for the Royal Flying Doctor Service at the time of the alleged murders.

On 30 July 2023, Hyde said they were paged at 8.34am and dispatched from Wonthaggi to go to Don and Gail Patteson’s house.

Hyde said the couple had been experiencing vomiting and diarrhoea for about 8 hours and told them they had attended a dinner party the day before.

The jury heard Don had told Hyde’s colleague that they had eaten beef Stroganoff.

“Preliminary vital signs such as blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen levels, were they within a normal or abnormal range all normal limits. Gail’s heart rate was a little bit elevated, but it wasn’t out of scope for us at the time,” Hyde said.

The couple told Hyde that they had taken anti-nausea medication, which had been effective for Gail but not for Don.

Hyde said they transported the couple to the Korumburra urgent care centre, a journey that took about three minutes.

“So we unloaded the stretcher at the bay at the back. Gail walked into the emergency care, we pushed Don in and then we transferred them onto the beds,” Hyde said, adding that they then transferred their care to the centre’s staff.

Hyde is excused without cross-examination by the defence.

Doctor reveals mushroom antidote was in short supply after fatal meal: Trial day six, as it happened

Of the four guests who dined on beef Wellington at Erin Patterson’s house in 2023, only one survived. On Tuesday, that guest – Ian Wilkinson – will tell his story for the first time when he takes the stand as a witness in the cook’s murder trial.

www.theage.com.au