‘You knew how suspicious it might look’: Erin Patterson makes sequence of denials in tense cross-examination | Victoria

Erin Patterson says she is “puzzled” {that a} clinic by which she stated she had an appointment for a gastric bypass affords no such surgical procedure, and denies mendacity about making herself vomit within the hours instantly after the meat wellington lunch, a court docket has heard.

In her sixth day within the witness field, Patterson was repeatedly requested below cross-examination by prosecutor Nanette Rogers SC whether or not she was mendacity in regards to the lethal lunch and different components of her proof earlier than her triple-murder trial.

Patterson, 50, faces three expenses of homicide and one cost of tried homicide regarding poisoning 4 in-laws with beef wellington served for lunch at her home in Leongatha, Victoria on 29 July 2023.

Patterson has pleaded not responsible to murdering her estranged husband Simon Patterson’s mother and father, Don and Gail Patterson, and his aunt Heather Wilkinson, and trying to homicide Ian Wilkinson, Simon’s uncle and Heather’s husband.

Legal professionals for Patterson say the loss of life cap mushroom poisoning was a tragic and horrible accident.

Patterson instructed the court docket final week that she had a pre-assessment reserving for gastric bypass surgical procedure scheduled at Enrich Clinic in September 2023.

However Rogers stated to Patterson on Tuesday that Enrich was a beauty dermatology clinic and didn’t provide gastric bypass surgical procedure.

Patterson stated she was “puzzled” that was the case.

“In what manner?” Rogers requested.

“Nicely I had an appointment with them, and that’s my reminiscence of what the appointment was for, in order that’s why I’m puzzled.”

Rogers confirmed the appointment was made, and had been cancelled by Patterson two days earlier than it was scheduled.

Patterson believed the appointment associated to weight-loss surgical procedure, however stated it might have been a special process.

“It wasn’t a lie, that’s what my reminiscence was,” Patterson stated.

Rogers additionally requested Patterson about her proof final week that she made herself vomit within the hours after the lunch, after she felt overfull from consuming the meat wellington and a big portion of orange cake. Patterson stated she had a historical past of binge consuming and purging courting again to her 20s.

Rogers accused Patterson of mendacity about vomiting on the afternoon of the lunch after her friends left.

“You didn’t inform a single medical particular person that you just had vomited up after the lunch on the twenty ninth of July?” Rogers requested.

“That’s true, I didn’t try this,” Patterson stated.

Rogers steered to Patterson that she lied about vomiting after the lunch, and about how a lot she ate at lunch, “since you’re attempting to account for why the others have been critically ailing and you weren’t”.

“I want that was true, however it’s not,” Patterson responded.

Patterson additionally denied solutions from Rogers concerning the plating on the lunch. Patterson stated proof Ian gave in regards to the friends being served on matching massive gray plates, and Patterson serving herself on a smaller lighter colored plate, was incorrect.

She stated she didn’t know whether or not proof Simon gave about Heather making two feedback to him about mismatched plates was additionally improper.

Rogers steered to Patterson she used completely different plates as she made poisoned beef wellingtons for her friends, however that hers didn’t include loss of life cap mushrooms.

“To keep away from any error, you took the additional precaution of utilizing a special and smaller plate, to plate your non-poisoned serve, appropriate or incorrect?” Rogers requested.

“Incorrect,” Patterson responded.

Patterson stated she didn’t personal a set of 4 matching plates.

“I recommend your entire story is unfaithful that you just plated the meals with out discrimination,” Rogers requested her.

“You’re improper,” Patterson replied.

Patterson made a sequence of denials throughout her proof on Tuesday, together with that she used the 138 minutes between her first and second visits to Leongatha hospital on the morning of 31 July to “cowl her tracks”.

She additionally denied a suggestion by Rogers {that a} beef wellington recovered by police from a wheelie bin outdoors her dwelling that very same day had been ready for Simon, who had cancelled his deliberate attendance the night time earlier than the lunch.

The leftovers recovered from the bin have been later discovered to include traces of loss of life cap mushrooms.

Rogers steered Patterson instructed so many individuals, together with her youngsters, Simon, well being professionals and youngster safety staff that she was unwell as a result of she wished it to seem to these those who the lunch had additionally made her ailing. Patterson stated this was incorrect.

“I recommend that you just made out that you just have been critically unwell … do you agree or disagree?” Rogers requested.

“I believe critically unwell is subjective. I stated what I stated,” Patterson responded.

She additionally denied a suggestion that she wished to seem as if she was as critically unwell as her 4 lunch friends.

However Patterson stated she could have been “confused” when she described to a baby safety employee, Katrina Cripps, how she felt driving within the days instantly after the lunch.

“I had had lots of people asking me the identical questions time and again, and I felt unwell and anxious,” Patterson stated.

“I’ll have gotten issues improper a little bit bit alongside the best way.”

Rogers ended her questioning of Patterson about her signs after the lunch with a smattering of 5 questions, together with suggesting that she didn’t devour “even a minute quantity of loss of life cap mushrooms on the lunch”, and that she didn’t endure from loss of life cap poisoning however was intentionally making it seem to be she was.

“You knew how suspicious it might look if you happen to didn’t appear sick like your friends, appropriate or incorrect,” Rogers requested.

“Incorrect,” Patterson stated.

Throughout an trade a couple of dialog Patterson had with Simon after the lunch, Patterson stated it was attainable she paused when requested about gathering her youngsters from faculty due to Simon’s sarcasm, not as a result of she was fearful it might make it appear she was not unwell.

“I do keep in mind the sarcasm. It actually was off-putting to me, yeah,” Patterson stated.

“Are you making this up as you go alongside, Ms Patterson?” Rogers stated.

“No,” she replied.

Earlier on Tuesday morning, after answering a query from Rogers concerning the web search historical past of units seized from her dwelling, Patterson tried to additional make clear the proof earlier than Rogers requested one other query.

“Ms Patterson, I’m the one who asks the questions,” Rogers stated.

“If there one thing that must be clarified in re-examination, your barrister will achieve this.”

“No downside,” Patterson replied.

The trial continues, with Patterson’s cross-examination anticipated to renew on Wednesday.