‘Don’t let anyone get in your ear,’ Justice Christopher Beale told jurors
The judge has told the jurors in the mushroom cook trial to not let anyone “get in your ear” as the mammoth murder trial enters its 10th week.
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Twelve jurors in the high-profile trial of accused triple murderer Erin Patterson are expected to start their deliberations from Monday.
Justice Christopher Beale is set to complete his “charge” or his instructions to the Supreme Court jury on Monday as the mammoth murder trial enters its 10th week.
He will round out his charge by summarising the prosecution and defence cases, before addressing the jury about the importance of reaching a unanimous verdict.
Ms Patterson is standing trial in Morwell, accused of murdering her estranged husband’s parents Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, along with Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson, 66.
The prosecution alleges she served them individual beef wellingtons she had deliberately laced with lethal death cap mushrooms at her Leongatha home on July 29, 2023.
Heather’s husband, pastor Ian Wilkinson, 71, was the only guest to survive.
Ms Patterson, 50, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of murder and one of attempted murder, claiming what happened was a “tragedy and a terrible accident”.
The jurors have heard from 53 witnesses since late April, including the accused herself, who spent eight days in the witness box.
Crown prosecutor Nanette Rogers SC and defence barrister Colin Mandy SC then spent a week delivering their closing addresses in a bid to convince the jury of their cases, before it was Justice Beale’s turn to address the group.
From Tuesday, he has been preparing them for deliberations by summarising the tendency, hearsay and expert evidence in the case, as well as the alleged incriminating conduct put forward by the prosecution.
“Don’t let anyone get in your ear over the weekend,” he said as he sent them home on Friday.
“You’ve been doing a great job. Keep going.”
But two of the 14 remaining jurors will be randomly balloted off before they can retire to consider their verdicts.
During the empanelment process, Justice Beale informed the jurors they would be sequestered during their deliberations.
“By that I mean … the jurors will not be permitted to go home,” he said.
“Instead, they will be bussed to a hotel at an undisclosed location, where they will stay overnight and be bussed back to the court the next morning to continue their deliberations.
“You will appreciate, I’m sure, that the reason for sequestering the jury once they have commenced their deliberations is to protect them from any interference or outside pressure whilst they are deliberating and to safeguard the integrity of their verdicts.”
He explained that the jury’s contact with the outside world while sequestered would be “limited” as they will be required to surrender their phones and go without newspapers, radio and TV.
“Families will be provided with a contact number for the jury keepers so that in case of an emergency their families can get in contact with the jurors, but otherwise … families will not be permitted to contact the jurors and vice versa.”
Originally published as ‘Don’t let anyone get in your ear,’ Justice Christopher Beale told jurors
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