A jury in Australia on Monday found a woman guilty of murdering her estranged husband's parents and aunt using poisonous mushroom-laced beef Wellington, reports Al Jazeera.
The verdict capped weeks of courtroom depositions in a case that has gripped the country and made headlines worldwide.
Erin Patterson, who was convicted, had denied the charges, and her defence team had called the deaths a "terrible accident".
What happened?
On July 29, 2023, Patterson hosted her former in-laws for lunch at her home in Leongatha, a town 135km southeast of Melbourne, in the state of Victoria in southeastern Australia.
Her guests included her mother-in-law, Gail Patterson; father-in-law Donald Patterson; Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson; and Heather's husband, Ian Wilkinson. Her estranged husband, Simon Patterson, declined the invitation.
Patterson, now 50 years old, served her guests individual beef Wellingtons, a baked steak dish where beef tenderloin is wrapped in a mushroom paste and puff pastry, with mashed potatoes and green beans on the side. Patterson ate beef Wellington, too.
All four of the guests fell sick within hours of eating the meal and were hospitalised. Gail, Donald and Heather passed away while Ian survived after spending weeks in an induced coma. Gail and Donald were both aged 70 at the time of their death, while Heather was 66 years old. Patterson's defence lawyers argued that she too fell sick after lunch, and presented her medical test results as evidence. It was later found out that the Wellingtons were laced with poisonous death cap mushrooms.
Prosecutors said that Patterson was separated from Simon, but the two had remained amicable afterwards. Patterson had two children with Simon, who were also present at the house during lunch, but did not eat the Wellingtons.
Patterson was arrested in November 2023 and has been in custody ever since. She was charged with the murders of Gail, Donald and Heather, alongside the attempted murder of Ian. These charges carry a life sentence.
What did the jury announce — and what about sentencing?
The jury had been sequestered last week, as they discussed and deliberated on a decision. On Monday morning, it became clear that they had arrived at a verdict:
- Guilty, on the three charges of murder, of the three people killed.
- Guilty, on the charge of attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson.
The judge did not announce a sentencing date, but that will be the next stage in the legal proceedings.
What are death cap mushrooms?
Amanita phalloides, commonly known as death caps, is the deadliest mushroom species for humans. The mushrooms are small, plain and yellow or brown, appearing like several other non-poisonous or edible mushroom species. While the species is native to Europe, these mushrooms are also found in North America and Australia, typically growing under oak trees.
They contain toxins which inhibit DNA production, leading to kidney and liver failure. If an individual consumes these mushrooms, initial symptoms such as abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea start appearing within six-12 hours.
All parts of the mushrooms are poisonous, and cutting or cooking them does not rid them of the toxins. One mushroom is enough to kill an adult.
What happened during the trial?
The jury trial opened on April 29 this year at Latrobe Valley Magistrates' Court, located in the former coal-mining town of Morwell in Victoria. Justice Christopher Beale is presiding over the case. Relatives and friends of Patterson testified during the trial.
Prosecution
The prosecution is led by Nanette Rogers, an advocate who has accused Patterson of foraging the poisonous mushrooms, using a kitchen scale to weigh out the fatal dose and adding them to her guests' beef Wellingtons and not her own. Rogers has also pointed to how Patterson lied to the police when she was asked whether she foraged mushrooms or owned a food dehydrator.
The police found a food dehydrator in a landfill near Patterson's house, in which traces of death cap mushrooms were found.
The prosecution also found that Patterson had looked at a website listing locations of death cap mushrooms.
Ian's testimony
The sole survivor of the incident, Ian, testified on the sixth day of the trial.
Ian, a 71-year-old church pastor, told the trial that on the day of the lunch, Patterson seemed "reluctant" to let her guests go inside her pantry. "Both Heather and Gail were offering to help plate up the food. The offer was rejected, and Erin pleaded," Ian said.
Ian said he and his wife experienced vomiting and diarrhoea that night, but they dismissed the symptoms as gastroenteritis.
Defence
Patterson's defence is led by barrister Colin Mandy, who told the trial that Patterson had no intention to kill her guests. However, the defence has not denied that there were death caps in the meals.
Mandy said that Patterson panicked and lied about foraging mushrooms to the police. "She panicked when confronted with the terrible possibility, the terrible realisation, that her actions had caused the illness of people she liked," he said.
He also added that Patterson fell sick from the same meal and did not fake her symptoms, something the prosecution alleges. Mandy told the trial, "She was not as sick as the other lunch guests, nor did she represent she was." He added that blood test results show indicators of sickness "that can't be faked," such as low potassium levels and elevated haemoglobin.
Patterson also revealed that she ate a smaller portion of the meal at lunch and binged on an orange cake that Gail Patterson had brought to share after the guests left. Patterson testified that after eating about two-thirds of the cake, she threw up, which, if true, might explain why her body had lower levels of toxins from the beef Wellington than the others.
Since her arrest in November 2023, Patterson has maintained her innocence and has pleaded not guilty to all counts. She holds that the poisonings were a "terrible accident".
Mandy told the trial that Patterson had developed an interest in foraging during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, and it was not unusual for her to gather knowledge about death cap mushrooms.
Motive
"You do not have to be satisfied with what the motive was or even that there was one," Rogers told the jury on April 30.
"The prosecution will not be suggesting that there was a particular motive to do what she did."
Rogers also presented messages Patterson had sent to friends on Facebook, expressing frustration over her in-laws not getting involved in a child support dispute between her and Simon.
In December 2022, she wrote: "I'm sick of this s**t I want nothing to do with them. I thought his parents would want him to do the right thing but it seems their concern about not wanting to feel uncomfortable and not wanting to get involved in their sons personal matters are overriding that so f*** em."
In another message, she wrote: "This family, I swear to f***ing god."
When Mandy asked Patterson how she felt about these messages, she said: "I wish I'd never said it … I feel ashamed for saying it, and I wish the family didn't have to hear that I said that. They didn't deserve it."
What do we know about the jury?
A 14-member jury was reduced to 12 by ballot, which will decide the verdict.
On July 1, Justice Beale urged the jurors to put emotions and sympathy aside while returning the verdict.
"The issue is not whether she is in some sense responsible for the tragic consequences of the lunch, but whether the prosecution proved beyond a reasonable doubt that she is criminally responsible," Beale said. "Emotions, such as prejudice and sympathy, must have no part to play in your decision."
Justice Beale also told the jurors to refrain from researching the case or discussing it outside the courtroom. There were initially 15 jurors, but one of them was dismissed last month for discussing the case with friends and family.
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