Murray Olds: Australian correspondent on Erin Patterson being accused of inconsistencies in mushroom trial

Triple-murder-accused Erin Patterson's cross examination continues in Australia. 

The 50-year-old is accused of intentionally serving a poisonous mushroom dish to her estranged husband's family in 2023.

She maintains her innocence.

Australian correspondent Murray Olds says Erin Patterson has been accused of multiple inconsistencies - and appeared 'discombobulated during the trial.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Murray Old's Ossie correspondence with us A mus.

Speaker 2 (00:03):
Very good afternoon, Heather, Hey tell me before we get
to elbow, tell me the latest with the Mushroom cook trial.

Speaker 3 (00:08):
Well, the prosecution, I mean, we're into the seventh week now,
and the prosecution forensically detailing its case against Miss Patterson,
and basically the prosecutioners saying, you've been telling lives all
the way along. You told lives about a string of things, including,
you know, having cancer when you didn't have cancer, basically saying,

(00:30):
why on earth would you be believed? The most recent
example came today, Miss Patterson still on the witness stand. Now,
as we all know, July twenty twenty three, she had
the in laws over for lunch and other relatives and
three of the four died. Now, it was put to
Miss Patterson that that she actually had a different plate.

(00:53):
She had an orange plate and the guests had gray plates.
And the prosecution says, well, you do that because you
knew you didn't want to have one of these dreadful
beef Wellington's, because they were absolutely you know, they were
licensed to kill, So you made sure you had your
own lunch on an orange plate. No, no, no, she says, no, no, no,

(01:14):
I had the same plates, the same plates as my guests.
She's always denied the you know, the allegations, and it's look,
it's almost painful to be following this now because she
just looks so discobopulated. She's either you know, spun this
entirely elaborate, false kind of web, or she is genuinely

(01:36):
in need of some of some very serious help. Because
she just looks dreadful on the stand.

Speaker 2 (01:40):
I'm afraid you must do you think they've made a
mistake putting her on the stand.

Speaker 3 (01:45):
Look, I'm not a lawyer. I have no idea, but
you know, I mean I thought one a one law
you never put your own your own defense. You know,
the person who's in the who was charged with triple
murder on Earth? Would you put them in the stand
and explosion be cross examination? That would be my sort
of first thought there. Yeah, because she's making she just looks,

(02:09):
she looks dreadful. And if she is, you know, if
she has mental health issues, well now who knows, does
she or doesn't she? I've got no idea, never better,
I've never heard her speak. But there's massive interest in
this trial, as you know, and she just is making
a complete hash of her own defense. It looks to
me from this distance and.

Speaker 2 (02:28):
There does seem it. Hey, okay, so what do you
make of Elbow speaking to the National Priests Club and
what do you have to say?

Speaker 3 (02:33):
Well, as you said in that clip, I mean it's
his first big speech, the big sit down after the
thumping election went Labor with ninety four seats into one
hundred and fifty seat parliament. You've got forty three for
the coalition, forty three to ninety four, thirteen on the
cross bench. Now we did expect. In fact, this speech
was widely well, it wasn't leaked. It was given to

(02:53):
all the journals in Cambra beforehand. But look you didn't
extemporize a bit and they look the key takeaway for me,
and this has echoes of Bob Hawk over forty years ago,
nineteen eighty three. Bob Hawk beat Malcolm Fraser in nineteen
eighty three, and the first thing he's done is say, right,
we're going to convene a roundtable of unions and businesses.

(03:16):
We're going to work out and accord to get this
country moving. Because back then the same as the Federation
of labor in New Zealand so fractious. There are strikes,
to be a strike at Christmas, but he postal strike
at Christmas. There were strikes with Bundan all the time.
So Bob Hawk sorted that out and it seems to
be what Albaneze's suggesting now. At the start of a

(03:38):
thumping majority with his second termb he told the treasure
of Jim Charmers, I want you to convene a productivity summit.
Productivity identified by business, by the opposition and by the government.
That's the key thing we're going to get driving here.
So he wants business leaders, union leaders, civil society. You know,
I guess whatever that might be. They didn't want them

(03:59):
to sit down in Parliament in August and maybe set
the stage for something pretty ambitious. Who knows if they
can get all these people working together on the same
song sheet. Because I'm sure the Opposition will get invite
maybe we can see a rerun of Bob Hawk because
he transformed the country. Australia desperately needs tax reform. You

(04:20):
can't keep relying on income tax. You've got to broaden
the you know, the consumption tax base. It's so narrow
and it's not paying its way. So will they have
the courage, the political courage to spend some of that
political capital and take on tax reform. Who knows, but
certainly he set the stage today for you know, a
suggestion that maybe he might.

Speaker 1 (04:40):
Mars, it's good to talk to you, as it always is.
We'll talk to you in a couple of days. Again.
That's Murray Old's Australia correspondent.

Speaker 2 (04:45):
Thank you for more from Hither Duplessy Allen Drive. Listen
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