DAY two of the trial of Leongatha woman Erin Patterson, accused of the murders of three family members, and the attempted murder of a fourth following lunch at her home on Saturday, July 29, 2023, was dominated by the opening remarks by Crown Prosecutor Dr Nannette Rogers SC.
Among the allegations made by Dr Rogers in her address to the court are claims that when the accused woman handed out four meals of beef wellington, mashed potatoes and green beans to her guests, they were served on distinctly different plates from the one she put in front of herself.
According to Dr Rogers, the four guests, her in-laws Don and Gail Patterson of Korumburra, Gail’s sister Heather and her husband Ian Wilkinson also of Korumburra, were given their meals on larger, grey-coloured plates whereas the plate she took her own meal from was smaller, lighter in colour and variously described as being tan or orange with a pattern.
Dr Rogers said one of the deceased, Heather Wilkinson, had made a point of discussing the apparent inconsistency with her husband, Ian Wilkinson, the only person to survive the lunch apart from Erin Patterson herself, wondering why she had not used matching dinner plates.
Mrs Wilkinson also raised the issue with her son Simon while receiving treatment in hospital for intense gastro-like symptoms.
Another allegation receiving the focus of attention from Dr Rogers were repeated claims by the accused that she sourced the mushrooms for the meal, including button mushrooms from Woolworths in Leongatha and dried or dehydrated mushrooms from an Asian grocer in either Oakleigh or Mt Waverley, from commercial retailers, that she had not foraged for wild mushrooms herself.
Much of Dr Rogers’ remarks traced the timelines of the illnesses suffered by the four lunch guests, and allegedly to a lesser extent by Erin Patterson herself, from their symptoms at home overnight on Saturday into Sunday morning, to the Leongatha and Korumburra hospitals and ultimately to tertiary hospitals in Melbourne.
Dr Rogers is expected to conclude her remarks after lunch in Courtroom 4 at the Latrobe Valley Court Complex, to be followed by legal counsel for the defence, Mr Colin Mandy SC.
It had been anticipated that some witnesses would be heard today but it may be that the opening remarks and the defence response will take up much of the day.
Erin Patterson’s estranged husband, Simon Patterson, is scheduled to be the first witness on Thursday.
The accused woman, Erin Patterson, sat in the rear of the courtroom on Wednesday, wearing a blue and white striped shirt with her brown medium-length hair loose across her shoulders.
Shortly after entering court, one of Ms Patterson’s supporters turned towards her, smiled and waved from the front seats of the public gallery.
All 15 members of the jury, five women and 10 men, were in the court to hear the opening remarks.
