the time of Charlise's death.[1] Kallista Mutten did not use Seroquel[2] and there is no evidence to suggest that anyone else around Charlise at this time other than the offender used the drug. It must be at least probable that the offender administered the drug to Charlise, necessarily causing her to be drowsy and nauseous. That would certainly have been the result of the ingestion of what Dr Judith Perl told the jury was a toxic dose of quetiapine, likely administered to her within six hours of her murder.[3]
23 In my conclusion, however, the evidence is insufficient to establish that the offender in fact administered Seroquel to Charlise or, if he did, why he may have done so. Although it is not likely, I cannot rule out as a reasonable possibility that Charlise somehow took the drug by accident or mistake. That evidence, except insofar as it is relevant to Charlise's vulnerability, must be set aside.
24 There was evidence before the jury of another unexplained feature of the circumstances surrounding Charlise's murder, about which something should be said, and that is the evidence concerning Charlise's underpants. When her body was recovered on 18 January 2022, Charlise was dressed in the same clothes her mother had last seen her wearing, with the exception of her underpants, which were missing.[4] Like the evidence concerning the detection of quetiapine in Charlise's system, it is not possible to draw any conclusions about this aspect of the evidence. How and why Charlise came to ingest Seroquel, and how and why she was without her underpants when her body was found, must remain undetermined. Blame for either cannot be attributed to the offender to the very high criminal standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt.
25 There is very little that is undetermined about what occurred after Charlise was shot and murdered by the offender. The offender left her body at Mount Wilson on 12 January 2022 and drove to Lower Portland, where he picked up Ms Mutten. The two drove on to Sydney where they indulged in drug use and sex. Throughout the day, Ms Mutten accepted the offender's account of having left
