Featured Image Credit: ABC News Australia
Topics: Australia, Crime, Food and Drink
Emily Brown
A doctor who treated accused killer Erin Patterson after her family fell ill from eating poisonous mushrooms has described her unusual behavior in the aftermath of the alleged incident.
Dr Christopher Webster gave testimony at the ongoing trial of Patterson, who has been accused of murdering the parents of her estranged husband, Simon Patterson, after she invited them over to lunch.
Don and Gail Patterson and Simon's aunt, Heather Wilkinson, all died after Patterson served them a beef wellington that allegedly contained death cap mushrooms at her home in July 2023.
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Patterson, from Leongatha, in Victoria, Australia, has also been accused of attempting to murder Simon’s uncle and Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges against her.
As the trial continues, Dr Webster took to the stand to detail what happened after he treated Patterson, who arrived at the hospital after Don and Gail Patterson had already been transferred to intensive care.
Dr Webster testified that he'd told Patterson he was concerned her in-laws were victims of death cap mushroom poisoning, and questioned where she'd got the mushrooms used in the dish.
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In response, Patterson simply said: "Woolworths."
Dr Webster then recalled Patterson's unusual decision after he warned her that she could have 'been exposed to potentially deadly death cap mushroom poisoning'.
Dr Webster told Patterson that 'being in hospital would be a better place for her to be' and advised that she start undergoing treatment, but in spite of the doctor's recommendation, Patterson chose to discharge herself from hospital.
The doctor contacted two superiors to try and call the police in a bid to make Patterson return to the hospital, and he also tried to call her himself three times.
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After receiving Dr Webster's calls, Patterson did return to the hospital while police arrived at her home. Dr Webster advised police to secure leftovers of the meal, even though he had 'no idea' whether there might be anything left.
“I had no idea, but I figured there was a chance. Strike while the iron’s hot. The police were there,” he said.
When Dr Webster advised Patterson that her children may also need to go to hospital, she said they could be scared about being checked out.
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Dr Webster responded: “They can be scared and alive, or dead.”
The doctor's testimony comes after text messages Patterson had sent prior to the meal were revealed in court, showing how her ex-husband had pulled out of the lunch because he felt 'too uncomfortable'.
"Am happy to talk about your health and implications of that at another time," Simon wrote, after Patterson had claimed she was organizing the lunch because she had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer and wanted to discuss her health issues.
"If you’d like to discuss on the phone just let me know," Simon added.
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In response, Patterson replied to say she was 'really disappointed' that Simon wouldn't be attending the lunch, which she said had been 'exhausting' to prepare.
"I’ve spent many hours this week preparing lunch for tomorrow which has been exhausting in light of the issues I’m facing and spent a small fortune on beef eye filet to make beef Wellingtons because I wanted it to be a special meal as I may not be able to host a lunch like this again for some time," Patterson wrote.
"It’s important to me that you’re all there tomorrow, and that I can have the conversations that I need to have. I hope you’ll change your mind. Your parents, Heather and Ian, are coming at 12.30, and I hope to see you there," she continued.