A woman on trial for murder complained to a witness that her mother was "not a good mother to her", a Supreme Court jury in Launceston heard.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Natalie Maher, 48, has pleaded not guilty to murdering her mother Veronica Corstorphine at her home in Keane St West, South Launceston on October 3, 2019.
The Crown alleges Ms Maher, who had been living in the same house, smothered her mother with a pillow before leaving for Western Australia on October 5. Her mother was found deceased in her home on October 29.
Natalie Maher's former mother-in-law Patricia Maher said she had spoken to Ms Maher in late October.
"She said she was not with her mother, that she was as far north in Australia as it was possible to go," Patricia Maher said.
She was asked by Crown Prosecutor John Ransom whether Natalie Maher had mentioned her mother.
"She did say you are aware that my mother was not a good mother," Patricia Maher said.
"I had heard a lot of that that before it was not new."
But Ms Corstorphine's other sisters gave evidence that they had never had a similar discussion.
The defence in the trial includes that Ms Corstorphine may have died by suicide, or from a medical condition or at the hands of an intruder into her home.
The jury heard that Ms Corstorphine was one of a family of ten - seven sisters and three brothers.
A sister Lucinda Stewart was asked by Mr Ransom if Ms Corstorphine had ever expressed a wish to commit suicide.
Ms Stewart said she had joked and laughed about it.
"She wasn't serious she just said 'maybe I'll just pop myself off' and then we joked about it," she said.
Under cross examination by defence counsel Evan Hughes about the conversation Ms Stewart said: "I think I said 'don't be silly you would never do that'."
Ms Stewart said Ms Corstorphine could be very dramatic at times.
"That was a bit of theatre, she loved theatre," she said.
Ms Stewart said her last communication with her sister was at 5.21pm on October 3 when she emailed an article about America.
Another sister Pauline Robinson said a firm "no" when asked by Mr Ransom about any suicide discussion.
"I'm sure she would never do that," she said.
"I don't know why that question was asked she would never do that, she was a student of life."
Ms Robinson, who claimed to be "extremely close" to her sister rejected suggestions from Mr Hughes that she had discussed with Ms Corstorphine dark thoughts, mental health or a drinking problem.
Ms Robinson said she had received a phone call in November 2019 from someone named David who she didn't know.
"Why is Dale Mason [a friend of Ms Corstorphine's] trying to stop Natalie getting the will from her mother?," Ms Robinson said the caller asked.
She asked the caller who gave him her phone number and contact details.
"He said 'Natalie'," she told Mr Ransom.
The jury also heard discussion of a brooch which Ms Corstorphine purchased and which was found in Ms Maher's possession in Western Australia.
"Did Veronica ever express any intentions about the brooch?," Mr Ransom asked.
"She told me she would put it in her will for her daughter Natalie," Ms Robinson said.
Ms Robinson spoke to Ms Maher on October 29 when she heard that her sister was dead.
"I was surprised that she was in WA and asked her about it and she said she had been there for six weeks," she said.
She denied a suggestion from Mr Hughes that Ms Maher had said she was in WA from the sixth [of October].
"No she didn't it was six weeks, six weeks," she said.
A third sister Marguerite Peris said she had never discussed suicide with her sister.
"We had been talking about our parents and how they had passed and Veronica said 'that is not going to happen to me, I'm going to deal with it and not rely on anyone'," she said.
In July 2019 Ms Peris received a text message from Ms Corstorphine asking her to wish Natalie Maher's daughter a happy birthday.
"I did not know Natalie's daughter, it was out of the blue, very strange," she said.
Detective Senior Sergeant Bob Baker said police found a Coles receipt dated October 3 when they searched the property on October 29.
"It enabled us to go to Coles and access CCTV of the person," he said.
He said that the investigation involved seizure of a computer, bank records, flight details from Flight Centre, medical records and telephone records.
The trial before Justice Robert Pearce continues on Monday.
Nick Clark
I am the Supreme and Magistrates Court reporter for the Examiner for the past 18 months. My journalism career has clicked over 30 years and encompasses four different spells at Tasmanian newspapers.
I am the Supreme and Magistrates Court reporter for the Examiner for the past 18 months. My journalism career has clicked over 30 years and encompasses four different spells at Tasmanian newspapers.
