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A jury has begun deciding whether Erin Patterson is guilty of triple murder after she served her lunch guests a meal laced with death cap mushrooms.
Patterson faces three charges of murder and one charge of attempted murder relating to poisoning four former in-laws with beef Wellington served for lunch at her house in Leongatha in regional Victoria on 29 July 2023.
She has pleaded not guilty to murdering her estranged husband, Simon Patterson’s parents, Don and Gail Patterson, his aunt Heather Wilkinson, and attempting to murder Ian Wilkinson, Simon’s uncle and Heather’s husband.
The Victorian Supreme Court jury was sent out at about 1pm on Monday after hearing nine weeks of evidence, lawyers’ arguments, and the judge’s directions.
The original 14 jurors were reduced to 12 individuals who will decide Patterson’s fate regarding three murder charges and one attempted murder charge.
The jury in the trial must make their decision based on all the evidence and can only convict an accused person if they are satisfied of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Here is the process:
When will we know the verdict?
Jurors have no set time frame for their discussions. The details of their deliberations remain confidential, which means it could be resolved quickly or could extend over several days.
During the deliberation process, however, the jury can return to the court with further questions, directions, or reminders of certain evidence that was presented.
The jury can deliver its verdicts any time from 10.30am to 4.15pm on Monday through to Saturday.
What happens when the jury returns?
When the jury has reached a decision, the court and all parties are assembled.
The verdict is then presented before the judge, and the associate asks the jury two questions of the foreperson: “Have you agreed upon your verdict?” and “How say you on charge 1 of (name of charge), do you find (name of accused) guilty or not guilty?”
In the case of a guilty verdict, the accused will then come before a sentencing hearing.
In the case of a verdict of not guilty on all of the charges, the accused is acquitted of the offences and is released unconditionally.
What do the jury in this trial have to consider?
Justice Christopher Beale said every juror must agree on the verdict, although it did not matter how each person reached their conclusion.
The judge’s directions to the jury also included:
- They can use Patterson’s admitted lies to assess her credibility, but the lies alone are not evidence of guilt.
- The jurors are the judges of the facts and do not have to accept the opinions of experts who gave evidence.
- Disregard prosecution claims Patterson’s children would have been sick if they ate the lunch leftovers — there was no evidence to test this theory.
- Prosecutors do not have to prove a motive, although the lack of motive could be considered when assessing whether Patterson had the intention to kill.
- Resist bias or sympathy for Ian Wilkinson or the family of the victims.
What happens if the jury cannot decide?
Even if there is one dissenting member among the jury, it can cause a “hung jury”, which means a unanimous verdict couldn’t be reached.
Without attempting to sway the jurors’ verdicts, the judge may provide guidance to help them reach a consensus.
But if the jury still cannot reach a unanimous decision, a hung jury is declared, the jurors are discharged, and a new trial is eventually scheduled.
