11.52am
Erin Patterson’s final injustice: A nephew’s disbelief
By
Tim Patterson, Don’s nephew, spoke of the profound grief and lingering questions that have haunted him since the deaths of his loved ones. He described the agony of watching them fight for their lives in the hospital, a pain he had never experienced before.
Patterson recounted a diary entry where he questioned why “God decide[d] to end such amazing lives in such a horrific manner.” He reflected on how his previous encounters with death had been softened by the knowledge that the person had lived a whole life. However, holding vigil over Gail as she passed away, he felt a new pain — a deep, senseless, and unjust loss of stolen years.
Tim Patterson spoke of his uncle, Don, as “a beautiful, honorable, caring man” who exuded “love and joy in everything he did.” He said he looked up to his uncle’s perpetually young heart and his genuine care for others.
The lack of explanation weighs heavily, he told the court. He finds it difficult to comprehend a world without Don and Gail. “Why did Erin decide that she’d make her life’s work a portrait of death and destruction?” he asked. “I guess that’s the final injustice in all of this, the lack of explanation, reason, or remorse.”
Despite the passage of time, he said he still cries when he thinks about how they were lost.
“It’s a strange thing, but for some reason, I still can’t fully accept they’re gone. In my mind, it’s just that we haven’t seen each other in a while.”
11.56am
Silent exit: Erin Patterson walks past media as her victims’ statements echo
By
As Erin Patterson was taken out of the courtroom and back to the holding cells for a court adjournment, she looked straight ahead and away from the media or families nearby.
The court will return at 2.15pm. Follow our blog for more coverage into the afternoon.
12.22pm
Grief and loss: Erin Patterson’s victims’ pain laid bare in Melbourne courtroom
By
With the lives of her victims’ families forever changed, Erin Patterson is facing a courtroom where their collective pain is laid bare.
From a husband mourning his dead wife to a mother brokenhearted by the loss of her son and a nephew grappling with a senseless injustice, the victim impact statements echo with a shared grief and a search for answers that may never come.
From left: Don Patterson, Gail Patterson and Heather Wilkinson died after ingesting poisonous mushrooms. Ian Wilkinson was the sole-surviving lunch guest.
Follow our live updates as the court hears from those left behind. Here are some of the statements heard in courtroom four earlier today:
- Ian Wilkinson (sole survivor of the beef Wellington lunch): After 44 years in a loving marriage, Wilkinson says he feels lost, only half alive without his wife, Heather. Broken sleep, emptiness at work, even pottering about in the house and garden leave Wilkinson feeling alone, he told the court.
- Simon Patterson: The son of Don and Gail Patterson described the relentless media scrutiny and public attention that have invaded his family’s life since the tragedy. His two children, he wrote, have been left to live their lives without grandparents. They have also lost the kind of relationship with their mother that every child yearns for.
- Ruth Dubois (lost her mum): Dubois was raised in faith and love. Now, she says, she feels like she is left to live her life thinking that the world is cruel and unkind.
- Martha Patterson (lost her son): In a sorrowful victim impact statement, Don Patterson’s elderly mother, 100-year-old Martha, described the “horrific circumstances” of losing her son.
1.32pm
What can the judge consider in his sentence?
By
The plea hearing will canvas a number of matters that Justice Christopher Beale can consider when determining his sentence for Erin Patterson.
The jail time he imposes will be based on a number of factors, which normally include: any early guilty plea, signs of remorse, psychological or medical material, victim impact statements and precedent, or other sentences for the same type of offending.
Judges must also consider the seriousness of the offence, what maximum penalties apply – in this case, life imprisonment for murder – whether the accused has prior offences, their prospects of rehabilitation, and if there is any need to deter others in the community from committing similar crimes.
In Erin Patterson’s case, she pleaded not guilty throughout, so will not have the advantage of receiving a sentencing discount for an early plea. Her strenuous denials will also limit how much she can rely on remorse.
But she has no prior convictions and the case is so unusual that it’s unlikely to require deterrence for other members of the community.
Her defence team is expected to give evidence to the judge about her mental state and how tough in time in custody has already been.
In Victoria, a sentence
can only be imposed on an adult to achieve one or more of the following purposes:
- Just punishment – to punish the offender in a way that is just in all the circumstances
- Deterrence – to discourage the offender or other people (known as general deterrence) from committing the same or similar offences
- Rehabilitation – to create conditions that help the offender to lead a law-abiding life
- Denunciation – to denounce, condemn or censure the offender’s behaviour (that is, make it clear to the community that the behaviour is wrong)
- Community protection – to protect the community from the offender.
A judge can also take into account how long the offender has remained in custody awaiting trial and sentence, which is called pre-sentence detention.
September 8 is the date Erin Patterson will learn her fate – whether that be life in prison without the possibility of parole, as the prosecution has requested, or life with the possibility of the poisoner one day walking outside of jail once again.
www.theage.com.au
www.abc.net.au
