Erin Patterson: Husband Simon Patterson returns to witness box for mushroom murder trial

Erin Patterson “never actually asked” for updates on the conditions of the people she is accused of poisoning with death cap mushrooms in a beef wellington lunch, a jury has been told.

Ms Patterson’s estranged husband Simon faced a second day of cross-examination by her barrister, Colin Mandy SC, before the Latrobe Valley Supreme Court on Friday.

Mr Mandy asked if, beyond telling Ms Patterson his parents were ill, he had updated her as their conditions worsened.

“Um, it intrigued me that she never actually asked,” Mr Patterson said.

“The answer is yes we didn’t have that conversation.”

Mr Patterson was also questioned on the conversation he’d had with his father in hospital the day following the lunch.

He told the court Don Patterson had mentioned to him that Erin had brought up a cancer diagnosis as the reason for the lunch and wanted advice on “how to break it to the kids”.

“I came out of that conversation believing she had a diagnosis with cancer or at least she told him she had a diagnosis with cancer,” he said.

Mr Patterson pushed back on a suggestion by Mr Mandy, that it was possible Don had said a suspected diagnosis not a confirmed diagnosis.

“I reckon we’re starting to get in the rounds of flying teapots possibility,” he said.

“Miscommunications happen, it’s possible I misunderstood … that’s at the flying teapot end of possibility.”

Jury warned to avoid conversations over weekend: Judge

The 15-person jury was sent home for the weekend shortly before 1pm after receiving a warning not to discuss the case or look up information.

Justice Christopher Beale said there had been extensive media coverage and people in their personal lives would no doubt want to discuss the case.

“You have to shut that conversation down. You have to say I can’t talk about it,” he said.

He urged jurors to rest and come back to court on Monday, when Simon Patterson continues giving evidence, refreshed.

“The best preparation is to have a good weekend and to come back to court refreshed,” he said.

‘Extremely aggressive’: Relationship soured over child support, husband claims

The topic has turned to issues that arose in the estranged couple’s relationship after Ms Patterson applied for child support payments.

The jury was told that in 2022, years after they separated in 2015, Mr Patterson filed a tax return indicating they were separated.

This, he said, raised issues with Ms Patterson over family tax benefits and they agreed to her applying for child support payments.

But in late 2022, Mr Patterson gave evidence he spoke to someone from the Department of Human Services who advised him he should stop paying expenses such as school fees and medical bills.

“She really emphasised it in the conversation with me … my understanding was she’d seen other people end up double paying and get really upset,” he said.

Mr Patterson agreed their communication became emotive over the issue with “pettiness” on both sides.

“From my point of view, Erin was being extremely aggressive. I thought a mediator could help us with it,” he said.

Mr Mandy told the court Mr Patterson’s child support obligations were assessed at $38 a month, questioning him on whether he could see that from her perspective this was “extremely unfair”.

He agreed, acknowledging $38 was far less than he’d previously paid in private school fees.

‘I’m very hurt’: Ms Patterson felt left out of family event

Under questioning by Mr Mandy, Mr Patterson agreed that after their separation in 2015, Ms Patterson remained a part of the extended family and attended events.

A series of Signal messages between the pair on October 14, 2022, were shown to the jury in which Ms Patterson expressed a fear she was being left out.

“Hey are you coming to mum’s birthday lunch tomorrow,” Mr Patterson asked her.

“Seems my invite tomorrow is a bit of an afterthought. I might pass as I’m not going to go somewhere I’m not wanted,” she responded.

“What I reckon is everybody forgot to actually invite me to this thing and I’m very very hurt by this.”

Mr Patterson responded: “you’re as far off the mark … you already have the facts but you can think what you want”.

“I know they would love you to be there. They’ve been talking about this for a week.”

Ms Patterson later said she’d been messaged by his parents and agreed to come, with the pair apologising to each other.

Health battles laid bare in mushroom trial

Questioned on Ms Patterson’s experience with hospitals, Mr Patterson confirmed his wife had a history of leaving hospitals against medical advice.

“That’s fair, Erin hates hospitals,” he said.

He told the court Ms Patterson had told him about a number of medical issues over their relationship, including a heart arrhythmia, a chronic disease and post-natal depression.

“I believed that to be true and I still have no reason to not believe that,” he said.

“She struggled a lot with mental illness especially post-natal depression after (their son) was born.”

The court was taken to a text message exchange between the pair in late 2022, when Ms Patterson was visiting Tasmania with their two children.

“Hey do you remember that stupid Latin name that was given for my heart issue,” Ms Patterson messaged.

“It sounded like sinus tachycardia, why do you ask?” Mr Patterson responded.

“Thanks, just curious and wanted to google it,” she responded.

Tears as ‘rocket car’ video played

Mr Mandy played a video taken 12 days before the fatal lunch that killed three people, depicting Mr Patterson’s son and father, Don Patterson, conducting a “science experiment”.

The pair ignite a “rocket car” in a backyard.

“Oh, it’s working but why isn’t it going,” Mr Patterson’s mother Gail Patterson says in the recording.

Mr Patterson teared up and gave a big exhale as the footage was played, grabbing a tissue. He confirmed his son and his father had a close relationship and the boy was being tutored by the former schoolteacher.

Mr Patterson faced extensive questioning as the first witness to be called on Thursday, first by Crown prosecutor Nanette Rogers SC and later by Mr Mandy.

For much of the day’s hearing, Mr Patterson answered the hundreds of questions in a calm and measured approach, but his voice began to falter and his eyes began to tear up as the topic turned to the first time he saw his parents in hospital.

He reached for the tissue box and blew his nose as he described seeing them both in the Korumburra Hospital the morning of July 30, 2023.

“Dad was substantially worse than Mum. He was really struggling,” he said.

“He was lying on his side, he was hunched quite noticeably. A really discoloured face … speaking was an effort and taking the energy to speak was an effort.“His voice was strained in a way that was, he wasn’t right inside. He was feeling pain.”

Gail and Mr Patterson’s aunt Heather Wilkinson both died from multiple organ failure due to amanita poisoning on August 4.

Don died the following day from the same poisoning, while Ms Wilkinson’s husband Ian gradually recovered and was discharged on September 11.

Prosecutors allege Ms Patterson deliberately poisoned the quartet with “murderous intent” after serving a beef wellington lunch containing death cap mushrooms at her home on July 29.

Ms Patterson, however, contends she did not intentionally nor deliberately poison her in-laws but accepts there were death cap mushrooms in the meal.

She has pleaded not guilty to three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.

The trial continues.