Latest news with #July2023
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Daily Mail
Why the Erin Patterson trial is like an Olympic high jump event - as defence says their client is not an atheist
Erin Patterson is a God-fearing mother who had every reason to want her lunch guests alive, a jury has heard. On Thursday, Patterson's barrister Colin Mandy, SC compared the trial to the sport of high jump as he finally completed his defence to the jury, which has been sitting on the trial for eight long weeks. Patterson, 50, has pleaded not guilty to the murders of Don and Gail Patterson, and Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson. They died after consuming death cap mushrooms served in beef Wellingtons during lunch at her Leongatha home on July 29, 2023. Only Pastor Ian Wilkinson survived the lunch, with a charge of attempted murder also hanging over Patterson's head. Mr Mandy urged the jury not to believe any suggestions that his client had not been a legitimate Christian. 'Erin Patterson was not an atheist,' he said. The suggestion had been made at the beginning of the trial when a witness who had been in a Facebook group with Patterson claimed she had told them she was one. The jury heard Patterson had been an atheist when she met Simon, but converted to Christianity as a result of his influence. Mr Mandy said members from a smaller chat group that Patterson was in weren't asked questions about her religious beliefs by the prosecution. 'As to what Erin's religious beliefs might be, and that's an example we say of picking and choosing the evidence that suits them and ignoring the others. 'Picking a misleading, we say, piece of evidence about her being two-faced and constructing a theory around that and ignoring the overwhelming weight of the other evidence that points in the opposite direction.' Mr Mandy had been critical of Crown prosecutor Dr Nanette Rogers' closing address to the jury earlier this week, suggesting she had mislead the jurors by cherry-picking evidence to suit her narrative. He told the jury the prosecution had a 'high bar' to leap to establish Patterson was guilty of murder. 'A trial like this sometimes seems like a competition - naturally, one side against another, like we're competing against each other like a boxing match or a football match or netball - or whatever it is,' Mr Mandy said. 'The truth is, it is more like the high jump. This is important. Only the prosecution has to get over the bar. 'Defence doesn't have to do anything. Defence doesn't have to jump any bar. Erin Patterson doesn't have to jump any bar at all.' Mr Mandy said if the jury thought his client 'maybe' deliberately poisoned the meal, it must find her not guilty. 'If you think that she probably deliberately poisoned the meal, you must find her not guilty,' he continued. 'If you think it's possible that she intended to kill or cause really serious injury to Don, or Gail or Heather, you must find her not guilty. 'If you think maybe she intended those things, then you must find her not guilty.' 'If you think probably she intended those things, you must find her not guilty.' 'And if you think it's possible Erin intended to kill Ian, you have to find her not guilty. Maybe she intended to kill Ian: not guilty.' Mr Mandy claimed to the the jury it had been sold 'convoluted' and 'ridiculous' propositions by Dr Rogers during her closing address. These included that Patterson would murder without any motive to do so and lie about cancer to get her guests to attend the lunch. He further dismissed the prosecution view that Patterson believed her lunch guests would 'take her secrets (about her medical issues) to the grave with them'. Mr Mandy suggested there was no way his client would have committed the crime knowing she would be under the spotlight of investigators. The jury heard Patterson ought be commended for choosing to enter the witness box and facing off with Dr Rogers in person. 'When she chose to do it, she made that decision as an innocent person,' Mr Mandy said. Mr Mandy said Patterson had answered questions carefully, 'even pedantic', he said. 'You would not have had the impression that she was trying to charm you or persuade you,' Mr Mandy said. 'She was going about the job she had.' He explained his client had told lies after the lunch, dumped her dehydrator and wiped her mobile phone in acts of sheer panic. The wiping of her phone, Mr Mandy told the jury, had been a 'stupid thing'. Listen to The Trial Of Erin Patterson on your favourite streaming platform 'There's all sorts of reasons why an innocent person can engage in that type of behaviour,' he said. 'Erin got into the witness box and told you she did those things because she panicked when confronted with the terrible possibility, the terrible realisation, that her actions had caused the illness of the people she loved.' Mr Mandy said she told the truth even when it was 'deeply embarrassing' and admitted she told lies. He declared that his client came out of extensive cross-examination 'unscathed'. 'Her account remained coherent and consistent day after day,' he said. Mr Mandy insisted his client is and had always been innocent of the charges. 'Our submission is the prosecution case cannot get over that high bar of beyond reasonable doubt,' he said.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Mushroom murder suspect fell sick from same meal: defence
An Australian woman accused of killing three lunch guests with toxic mushrooms fell sick from the same meal, her defence said Thursday, rejecting claims she faked her symptoms. Erin Patterson, 50, is charged with murdering her estranged husband's parents and aunt in July 2023 by spiking their beef Wellington lunch with death cap mushrooms. She is also accused of attempting to murder a fourth guest -- her husband's uncle -- who survived the lunch after a long stay in hospital. Patterson has steadfastly maintained her innocence during a seven-week-long trial that has made headlines from New York to New Delhi. As the trial came to its closing stages, defence lawyer Colin Mandy poked holes in the prosecutor's case, saying his client, too, fell ill after consuming the beef-and-pastry dish. Patterson's medical tests at the hospital revealed symptoms "that can't be faked", including low potassium and elevated haemoglobin, he said. "She was not as sick as the other lunch guests, nor did she represent she was," Mandy said. The prosecution maintains Patterson did not consume the fatal fungi and faked her symptoms. - 'She panicked' - Mandy said his client lied in panic in the days after the lunch, trying to "conceal the fact that foraged mushrooms went into the meal". "If that was found out, she feared she would be held responsible," her defence said. "She panicked when confronted with the terrible possibility, the terrible realisation, that her actions had caused the illness of people she liked." Mandy said he was not "making an excuse" for Patterson's behaviour after the lunch, but that it did not mean she meant to harm or kill her guests. Patterson originally invited her estranged husband Simon to join the family lunch at her secluded home in the farming village of Leongatha in Victoria state. But he turned down the invitation on the eve of the meal, saying he felt uncomfortable going, the court heard earlier. The pair were long estranged but still legally married. Simon Patterson's parents Don and Gail, and his aunt Heather Wilkinson, attended the lunch. All three were dead within days. Heather Wilkinson's husband Ian fell gravely ill but eventually recovered. The trial in Morwell, southeast of Melbourne, is in its final stages. lec/djw/tym
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'Welcome to Plathville': Micah's Girlfriend Faces the Family's Wrath, Is Compared to Ethan's Ex Olivia in Season 7 Trailer (Exclusive)
PEOPLE has an exclusive first look at the upcoming season of Welcome to Plathville, which premieres on Tuesday, July 22 at 10 p.m. ET on TLC While Ethan moves on from Olivia after their messy divorce, Micah worries his relationship with Veronica is following the same path after tension brews between her and the family Amid the drama, Moriah decides to escape with "a life-changing move"Welcome to Plathville is returning to our screens this summer! In PEOPLE's exclusive first look at the season 7 of the TLC reality show, the Plaths are taking on 'raw emotions, shocking surprises, new faces and fresh starts," according to an official synopsis. For some members of the family, 'love is in the air,' but others are forced to make difficult decisions about the future during the upcoming season. While parents Kim and Barry struggle through their ongoing divorce, their 21-year-old daughter Lydia has marriage on her mind with boyfriend Zac — with whom she plans to save their first kiss, among other 'firsts,' for their wedding day. When she claims that she immediately 'knew he was the one,' her brothers' are skeptical. Isaac, 19, is in a new relationship, as is Ethan, 27, who spent last season dealing with the aftermath of his tumultuous divorce from ex-wife Olivia. 'Out of the blue, I found the one the second time around,' Ethan explains in the trailer. 'The absence of drama is amazing. In no situation would I ever want any of that back.' Meanwhile, Moriah decided to make 'a life-changing move" after 'taking a step back' from the drama at home, which included cutting off her friendship with Micah's girlfriend, Veronica. When growing tension between Veronica and the Plaths draws a wedge between her and Micah, 27, history begins to repeat itself, and they 'can't seem to get on the same page.' 'I'm trying to ride the line of not doing what I feel like Ethan did,' Micah says. 'He took Olivia's side, didn't talk to my mom or dad. I don't want anything close to that.' 'Veronica thinks that my family was out to get her, and Olivia thought the same thing,' Ethan adds before telling Veronica: 'If you want to be a part of this family this is the price you pay.' 'I'm going to be honest, I don't know if I want to be part of the family,' she replies. Later, she admits that she doesn't see a happy ending in her relationship with Micah. 'I feel like I'm in chemistry class and, like, mixing things together, and it's going to explode any second,' she reveals to cameras. 'I know this will go bad. Mark my words.' Veronica confides in Olivia, who filed for divorce from Ethan in 2024 after years of conflict with his parents and siblings. 'I should have warned you,' Olivia tells Veronica on a call. The dramatic ending shows Ethan and Olivia come face-to-face, with him asking her to 'please stop,' and her responding, 'no.' Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Season 7 of Welcome to Plathville premieres on Tuesday, July 22 at 10 p.m. ET on TLC. Read the original article on People
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Daily Mail
Explosive defence argument revealed about why Erin Patterson got sick before any of her lunch guests - as the prosecution case is picked apart
Erin Patterson 's early onset of illness after serving deadly beef Wellingtons to her lunch guests was brought on by her preparation of the meal, a jury has heard. On Wednesday, Patterson's barrister Colin Mandy, SC continued to outline his client's defence against claims she deliberately served poisoned pastry meals to the relatives of her estranged husband Simon Patterson. Patterson, 50, has pleaded not guilty to the murders of Don and Gail Patterson, and Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson. They died after consuming death cap mushrooms served in beef Wellingtons during lunch at her Leongatha home on July 29, 2023. Only Pastor Ian Wilkinson survived the lunch, in what Crown prosecutor Dr Nanette Rogers, SC on Monday suggested had been a big mistake. The jury has previously heard Ms Patterson claimed to have become ill shortly after the fateful lunch while her guests became sick much later, around midnight. 'There's a sensible reason for that, because in the morning, several hours before the guests arrived, she was stirring and tasting the duxelle,' Mr Mandy told the jury. 'She was preparing that part of the meal. She was tasting it and that's why she added the dried mushrooms to it. So at least a few hours before anyone else ate any, she had had some.' The jury has heard prosecutors claim that Patterson was never sick from what she ate at the lunch and had simply pretended to be, so as to cover-up her alleged crime. Dr Rogers told the jury medical tests revealed Patterson had no signs of death cap poisoning, unlike her guests who suffered severe symptoms, including organ failure. She argued that Patterson fabricated symptoms, such as vomiting after eating cake, to appear sick like her guests. 'We suggest that if the accused had truly vomited ... that is a detail she would have shared with medical staff,' Dr Rogers said. 'The fact that she never made any mention of it should cause you to seriously doubt this claim and we suggest, reject ... [this claim] as a lie.' Mr Mandy said Patterson's claim that she vomited after the lunch ought be treated as truthful. The court heard Patterson claimed she had vomited shortly after the lunch ended, around 2.45pm. 'Now if that was a lie, members of the jury, to encourage you to think that the poison had all left her body, she surely would've said to you that it happened as soon as the guests left,' Mr Mandy said. Mr Mandy also suggested Patterson's evidence that she couldn't remember what was in her vomit ought also be treated as the truth. 'She can't be more precise about the contents of her stomach. If she was lying, if she was lying to you, she would say, ''oh look, when I threw up, I could clearly recognise pastry and meat and mushrooms in there. Absolutely categorically it all came up'',' Mr Mandy said. 'If she was lying, that's what she'd say. But instead she says, 'I don't know, it's vomit'. If she was lying, she would've said, ''I threw up immediately and I could clearly see everything''. She didn't say that to you.' Mr Mandy further suggested Patterson did not become as sick as her lunch guests due to a number of significant factors. He said expert evidence suggested people who consumed the same amount of toxin could react in different ways. 'People can eat the same meal, some develop a higher grade, some develop a lower grade of the severity of the illness,' Mr Mandy said. He told the jury there could have been a variation in toxicity from one person's portion to another. And some people have different reactions upon consuming toxins, he said. 'So some people have a better toxic response than others. Yes. So depending on an individual's tolerance to that particular toxin or their physiological response that may be different,' Mr Mandy said. Expert evidence further suggested the age of the individual could also play a factor as could the weight of the person. 'Obviously weight is a factor,' Mr Mandy said. 'As you know, Erin weighed over a hundred kilos. Age is a factor. She's significantly younger than the other guests.' Mr Mandy accused the prosecution of providing 'misleading impressions' to jurors during Dr Rogers' closing address. 'So Dr Rogers yesterday in her closing argument, invited you to think about what you would do in this situation if this was really just a horrible accident,' he said. 'And what the Crown was asking you to do is to engage in an exercise which might be dangerous and seductive, but it's not appropriate because it involves hindsight reasons. 'And hindsight reasoning is dangerous because it distorts how we evaluate decisions and actions that occurred in the past.' Mr Mandy further accused lone lunch guest survivor Ian Wilkinson of providing the jury incorrect evidence when he described Patterson eating her meal off a different coloured plate. 'It has to be the case that Ian Wilkinson is wrong about what he said. It makes no sense logically that you would use that method to deliver up an unpoisoned parcel, but otherwise, on all of the evidence, he's wrong; honestly mistaken,' Mr Mandy said. He also said Mr Wilkinson was wrong about the colour of Patterson's other plates, which he had described as being grey. 'Erin and Simon were far more familiar with the crockery in the house than Ian was, and so we submit to you that you would have to find, on a proper and analytical examination of that evidence, that he wasn't right about those plates. Honestly mistaken,' Mr Mandy said. Mr Mandy also claimed it would have made more sense for Patterson to simply mark the 'safe Wellington' on the pastry rather than serve it on a different coloured plate. We submit to you there is only one logical way of getting around that problem if this was your plan, and that would be to mark the unpoisoned one, it's wrapped in pastry, in some way, so that you can recognise it and differentiate it from the others,' Mr Mandy said. 'Easy to do, pastry, in which case you would not need different coloured plates.' He urged the jury to consider why his client would have 'lured' her lunch guests to lunch with a tale about a false cancer diagnosis if they did not discuss the issue until after they had all eaten the Wellingtons. 'On the Crown case, her object had already been achieved,' he said. 'The only rational conclusion … is the lie about cancer has absolutely nothing to do with the intention to kill, if there was one.'
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The Sandman Season 2 Trailer: The End is Coming for Morpheus
Netflix has finally shared the Season 2 trailer for the highly anticipated final installment of the hit fantasy drama . The next installment will be divided into two parts, with Volume 1 set to premiere the first six episodes on July 3, while Volume 2 debuts the remaining five episodes on July 24. 'After a fateful reunion with his family, Dream of the Endless must face one impossible decision after another as he attempts to save himself, his kingdom, and the waking world from the epic fallout of his past misdeeds,' reads the official Season 2 logline. 'To make amends, Dream must confront longtime friends and foes, gods, monsters, and mortals. But the path to forgiveness is full of unexpected twists and turns, and true absolution may cost Dream everything.' Check out The Sandman Season 2 trailer below (watch more trailers): The video highlights the new challenges that Morpheus will face in the final chapter while also hinting at the Dream god's impending end. One of these challenges includes going to hell once again to retrieve someone he loves. It also teases the arrival of the rest of Dream's Endless siblings. The Sandman is written and executive produced by showrunner Allan Heinberg. The ensemble cast includes Tom Sturridge, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Mason Alexander Park, Donna Preston, Esmé Creed-Miles, Adrian Lester, Barry Sloane, Patton Oswalt, Vivienne Acheampong, Gwendoline Christie, Jenna Coleman, Ferdinand Kingsley, Stephen Fry, Asim Chaudhry, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Razane Jammal, Ruairi O'Connor, Freddie Fox, Clive Russell, Laurence O'Fuarain, Ann Skelly, Douglas Booth, Jack Gleeson, Indya Moore, and Steve Coogan. It is executive produced by Neil Gaiman and David S. Goyer, with Jamie Childs directing all the episodes of Season 2. The post The Sandman Season 2 Trailer: The End is Coming for Morpheus appeared first on - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More.
