Hey, there's a news story that's really capturing everyone's attention, including grabbing worldwide headlines at the moment. It is the trial of Aaron Patterson, the alleged mushroom cook who's up on a triple murder chart.
Well, it's extraordinary stuff. Now.
She testified yesterday, and to get the latest went across to a friend and colleague of my Penelopelesh from nine years, one of our court reporters who is following the trial.
Penny Good Morning, Morning Morning, Clint, morning, Lauren. So what did what happened yesterday? Because on the stand? Yeah, were you surprised?
Yeah, look, Aaron Patterson has taken the stand. This trial has been going for twenty four days now, that's into its sixth week. The jury has heard from many, many witnesses from the prosecution, and it was after they officially said we close our case that her defense barrister got up very quickly and said the defense will call Aaron Patterson. Now that was quite a moment in the court room, but the judge actually said to the jury, well, this
might be an appropriate time to take a break. So everyone actually left the court for sort of fifteen minutes and then the jury came back in, and when they did, Aaron Patterson was there. She was at the witness stand and she was sworn in, so she took an affirmation rather than an oath, And it was quite a sort of a moment in the courtroom where obviously all eyes are always on the witness box, that they were on her to hear her exactly in her own words, talking
through what happened. Now, she was only up for about an hour yesterday. What she was being asked about was sort of her early relationship with her now estranged husband, Simon Patterson, and how she was feeling physically and emotionally with her relationship with his family and him at the time of this fatial lunch back in July twenty twenty three.
So when you say it was a real moment, was it expected that she wasn't going to get up.
It is entirely up to any accused whether or not they take the stand. They have the choice as to whether or not they do that. It's entirely a matter for everyone in their league team whether they will give evidence. Some people do choose to give evidence in any sort of case. Others choose not to remain in the dock.
So it is entirely up to each individual person. But Aaron Patterson, now she's been on this stand, I said, for about an hour and week expects that she will continue her evidence this morning.
So what sort of evidence have we heard already?
Penn? Obviously I've seen a few reports about her faith, also about her relationship with her strange husband.
Yeah, so what she was sort of taken through was when she met Simon Patterson. She says, you know, they met while they were both working at Monash Council in the early two thousands, and initially it was sort of through friends. They'd go to the group things together and she says she was a very staunch atheist at that time, but they discussed things like religion and politics, and she actually said I was trying to convert him to being an atheist, but it happened the other way and I
became a Christian. And she says this was after visiting the kar and Borough Baptist Church where his uncle Ian Wilkinson, one of the lunch guests, was preaching at the time. She had what she called a religious experience and she became quite overwhelmed by that. She also spoke about at the time of this lunch, she and Simon, she said, they were no longer really speaking in a super friendly way. They weren't really bantering, they were just functionally communicating about things like that.
And so do we have any idea how long this case is going to go for? Well?
Look, Aaron Patterson, as we said, she's been called by the defense as a witness, So how long she remains on the standard is entirely up to the prosecution and defense who are questioning her the defense at the moment. But then there will be other There may be other witnesses called by the defense. That's entirely up to them. Then they'll have to be some closing. So we would expect that this will continue for a week or so, at least initially. The jury has been told five six
weeks was the estimate for the trial. We've just started week.
See pen Have you been in more Well for six weeks?
Wow?
I have any wonder the offers.
Yes, no, No, one has seen many many of us for a while. I've been here for for six weeks. The people of Morewell's been very kind to have all of the media year. But it's been Yeah, it has sort of been a lengthy trial, as often these murder trials are, when there are a lot of witnesses and a lot of evidence to be called.
Well, it's caught the attention of the whole state, the whole country, and like Clint said, it's it's gathering news right around the world as well. So thank you so much for joining us this morning.
Thanks Penny. We'll see Penny's story on nine News tonight. It's wow
Jason Lauren Lauren wake up feeling good following them on the socials