Jury retires to decide verdict in Australia's mushroom murder trial
Jury members have retired to decide the fate of an Australian woman accused of murdering three members of her husband's family with a toxic mushroom-laced beef Wellington lunch.
Jurors began deliberating their verdict on 50-year-old Erin Patterson after a nine-week trial, with each twist consumed by a global audience.
"You must decide whether any of her statements were untrue," Judge Christopher Beale said in his final instructions.
"You should consider all of the evidence in the case and draw reasonable conclusions based only on the evidence you accept.
"Do not guess."
Jurors must reach a unanimous verdict - guilty or not guilty - for each of the four charges Ms Patterson faces, Judge Beale said.
Ms Patterson is charged with murdering her estranged husband's parents and aunt in July 2023 by spiking their beef-and-pastry meal with death cap mushrooms - the world's deadliest fungi.
She is also accused of attempting to murder a fourth guest - her husband's uncle - who survived the classic English dish after a long stay in hospital.
The 14-person jury was reduced to 12 by ballot before they started debating a verdict at the court in Morwell, southeast of Melbourne.
They will be sequestered at night during the deliberations.
Ms Patterson has steadfastly denied all charges against her, saying the poisoning of the beef Wellington - cooked in individual portions - was a mistake.
The trial has focused in forensic detail on the events surrounding the meal at her property in the farming village of Leongatha in Victoria state.
Her lunch guests that afternoon were Don and Gail Patterson, the elderly parents of her long-estranged husband Simon.
Places were also set for Simon's maternal aunt Heather and her husband Ian, a well-known pastor at the local Baptist church.
'Uncomfortable'
Simon was urged to come but he declined on the eve of the fatal lunch because he felt "uncomfortable".
Within days of the meal, his parents and aunt had died of organ failure. Of the four guests, only the pastor survived.
The prosecution alleges Ms Patterson deliberately foraged for death cap mushrooms and hid them in the meal, intending to kill her lunch guests.
She took care not to consume the fatal mushrooms and faked being sick after the lunch in a bid to avoid suspicion, the prosecution says.
However, Ms Patterson's defence lawyer said it was a "terrible accident" and she never intended to kill or harm anyone.
She only lied to authorities in panic after the lunch, including about the source of the mushrooms, for fear of being held responsible, her defence says.
Ms Patterson told police investigating the deaths that she did not own a food dehydrator, allegedly used to prepare the death cap mushrooms.
Security footage showed Patterson dumping a dehydrator at a nearby rubbish facility, and forensic tests found trace amounts of death cap mushrooms on the appliance.
"No one knows what they would have done in a similar situation," Defence Lawyer Colin Mandy told the trial.
Ms Patterson ate some of the same dish as her guests but did not fall as sick, her defence argued, saying she suffered from an eating disorder and made herself vomit afterwards.
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The Journal
2 hours ago
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Jury retires to consider verdict in Australia's mushroom murders trial
JURY MEMBERS HAVE retired to consider a verdict in the case of an Australian woman accused of murdering three members of her husband's family with a toxic mushroom-laced beef Wellington lunch. Jurors began deliberating their verdict on 50-year-old Erin Patterson after a nine-week trial, with each twist consumed by a global audience. 'You must decide whether any of her statements were untrue,' judge Christopher Beale said in his final instructions. 'You should consider all of the evidence in the case and draw reasonable conclusions based only on the evidence you accept. Do not guess.' Jurors must reach a unanimous verdict of guilty or not guilty for each of the four charges Patterson faces, Beale said. She is charged with murdering her estranged husband's parents and aunt in July 2023 by spiking their beef-and-pastry meal with death cap mushrooms – the world's deadliest fungi. She is also accused of attempting to murder a fourth guest, her husband's uncle, who survived the meal after a long stay in hospital. The 14-person jury was reduced to 12 by ballot before they started debating a verdict at the court in Morwell, southeast of Melbourne. They will be sequestered at night during the deliberations. Patterson has denied all charges against her, saying the poisoning of the beef Wellington – cooked in individual portions – was a mistake. The trial has focused in forensic detail on the events surrounding the meal at her property in the farming village of Leongatha in Victoria state. Her lunch guests that afternoon were Don and Gail Patterson, the elderly parents of her long-estranged husband Simon. Advertisement Places were also set for Simon's maternal aunt Heather and her husband Ian, a well-known pastor at the local Baptist church. 'Uncomfortable' Simon was urged to come but he declined on the eve of the fatal lunch because he felt 'uncomfortable'. Within days of the meal, his parents and aunt had died of organ failure. Of the four guests, only the pastor survived. The prosecution alleges Patterson deliberately foraged for death cap mushrooms and hid them in the meal, intending to kill her lunch guests. She took care not to consume the fatal mushrooms and faked being sick after the lunch in a bid to avoid suspicion, the prosecution says. But Patterson's defence lawyer said it was a 'terrible accident' and she never intended to kill or harm anyone. She only lied to authorities in panic after the lunch, including about the source of the mushrooms, for fear of being held responsible, her defence says. Patterson told police investigating the deaths that she did not own a food dehydrator, allegedly used to prepare the death cap mushrooms. Security footage showed Patterson dumping a dehydrator at a nearby rubbish facility, and forensic tests found trace amounts of death cap mushrooms on the appliance. 'No one knows what they would have done in a similar situation,' defence lawyer Colin Mandy told the trial. Patterson ate some of the same dish as her guests but did not fall as sick, her defence argued, saying she suffered from an eating disorder and made herself vomit afterwards. © AFP 2025
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The jury in the trial of an Australian woman who allegedly murdered three elderly relatives of her estranged husband using poisonous mushrooms has retired to consider its verdict. Erin Patterson (50), is charged with the murders of her mother-in-law Gail Patterson, father-in-law Donald Patterson and Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson, along with the attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson, Heather's husband, in July 2023. The prosecution alleges she served them death cap mushrooms in a Beef Wellington alongside mashed potato and green beans, before destroying evidence and lying to the police and medical workers to cover up her crimes. She denies the charges, that carry a life sentence, with her defence calling the deaths 'a terrible accident'. READ MORE On Monday, presiding judge Justice Christopher Beale ended a five-day summary of the evidence to the jury capping some of the final court proceedings in the trial, now in its tenth week. 'Your verdict of guilty or not guilty must be unanimous,' he told the jury of 14. 'No matter how you reach your verdict, you must all agree.' Seated in the dock at the rear of the court, Erin Patterson looked towards the jury box as the jurors were balloted to a final 12 who will decide the outcome of the trial. Ian Wilkinson, the sole surviving lunch guest who has attended almost every day of the trial, sat with relatives out of sight of the accused. The jury will discuss the evidence in the case at court during business hours, before being sequestered nightly at a hotel until they reach their verdict, Judge Beale said. The case at the Latrobe Valley Magistrates Court in Morwell, a former coal mining town whose best-known tourist attractions until the trial were a rose garden and a regional art gallery, has fascinated Australia. Members of the public have queued for hours for the limited seats in the court where the trial is taking place, while television crews and photographers have been camped outside the building. State broadcaster ABC's daily podcast on the trial is the country's most popular, while several documentaries on the case are already in production. - PA (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2025
RTÉ News
7 hours ago
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Jury retires to decide verdict in Australia's mushroom murder trial
Jury members have retired to decide the fate of an Australian woman accused of murdering three members of her husband's family with a toxic mushroom-laced beef Wellington lunch. Jurors began deliberating their verdict on 50-year-old Erin Patterson after a nine-week trial, with each twist consumed by a global audience. "You must decide whether any of her statements were untrue," Judge Christopher Beale said in his final instructions. "You should consider all of the evidence in the case and draw reasonable conclusions based only on the evidence you accept. "Do not guess." Jurors must reach a unanimous verdict - guilty or not guilty - for each of the four charges Ms Patterson faces, Judge Beale said. Ms Patterson is charged with murdering her estranged husband's parents and aunt in July 2023 by spiking their beef-and-pastry meal with death cap mushrooms - the world's deadliest fungi. She is also accused of attempting to murder a fourth guest - her husband's uncle - who survived the classic English dish after a long stay in hospital. The 14-person jury was reduced to 12 by ballot before they started debating a verdict at the court in Morwell, southeast of Melbourne. They will be sequestered at night during the deliberations. Ms Patterson has steadfastly denied all charges against her, saying the poisoning of the beef Wellington - cooked in individual portions - was a mistake. The trial has focused in forensic detail on the events surrounding the meal at her property in the farming village of Leongatha in Victoria state. Her lunch guests that afternoon were Don and Gail Patterson, the elderly parents of her long-estranged husband Simon. Places were also set for Simon's maternal aunt Heather and her husband Ian, a well-known pastor at the local Baptist church. 'Uncomfortable' Simon was urged to come but he declined on the eve of the fatal lunch because he felt "uncomfortable". Within days of the meal, his parents and aunt had died of organ failure. Of the four guests, only the pastor survived. The prosecution alleges Ms Patterson deliberately foraged for death cap mushrooms and hid them in the meal, intending to kill her lunch guests. She took care not to consume the fatal mushrooms and faked being sick after the lunch in a bid to avoid suspicion, the prosecution says. However, Ms Patterson's defence lawyer said it was a "terrible accident" and she never intended to kill or harm anyone. She only lied to authorities in panic after the lunch, including about the source of the mushrooms, for fear of being held responsible, her defence says. Ms Patterson told police investigating the deaths that she did not own a food dehydrator, allegedly used to prepare the death cap mushrooms. Security footage showed Patterson dumping a dehydrator at a nearby rubbish facility, and forensic tests found trace amounts of death cap mushrooms on the appliance. "No one knows what they would have done in a similar situation," Defence Lawyer Colin Mandy told the trial. Ms Patterson ate some of the same dish as her guests but did not fall as sick, her defence argued, saying she suffered from an eating disorder and made herself vomit afterwards.
