‘A bit of a Hogwarts special': Why society is obsessed with female killers

News.com.au

7 hours ago

Erin Patterson looks much like you'd expect any middle-aged Australian woman to – brown hair, glasses, unremarkable clothes. As University of Sydney criminologist Dr Helen Easton pointed out, 'she could be your sister, your mum, your aunty, a neighbour'.
At a glance, you wouldn't assume the mother-of-two to be capable of triple murder. Yet on Monday, Patterson was found guilty by a unanimous jury of killing her husband's parents and aunt, and attempting to kill his uncle, with a death cap mushroom-laced beef wellington lunch on July 29, 2023. The 50-year-old, who is yet to be sentenced, faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
Patterson's case has captivated the world. Newspapers from New York to New Delhi followed every twist of the trial, nicknaming her the 'Mushroom Killer'. Podcasters, film crews and true-crime fanatics descended on the rural town of Morwell, a sedate hamlet in Victoria better known for its prize-winning roses.
It's unlikely this appetite for the case will be sated any time soon, either. Following the verdict, the ABC, streaming giant Stan and multiple publishers announced a drama series, a three-part documentary and books, respectively, inspired by or about the saga, all pegged for release within the next year.
The reasons behind our rabid interest in Patterson, Dr Easton told news.com.au, are manifold, and largely united by a common thread: 'The available data, which for crime data is very accurate, tells us that women, on the whole, tend not to kill.'
'A powerful breach of gender norms'
In Australia, per the most recent Institute of Criminology statistics, the male homicide offender rate was 2.45 per 100,000 men – almost seven times the female offender rate of 0.36 per 100,000 women. Of the 314 identified homicides between 2019 and 2020, 87 per cent were committed by men.
When women do kill, Dr Easton explained, 'there is usually some connection to having experienced extreme, and often continued, violence or coercive control from their victim'. In cases of infanticide, 'women most often kill in a moment of diminished responsibility or automatism, connected to post-natal psychiatric illness'.
'Patterson's actions are therefore incredibly unusual,' Dr Easton said.
'Not only are they a breach of social norms, but they are also a powerful breach of gender norms.
'Stereotypes of women, which have historic origins but continue to inform legal processes to this day, suggest women to be caring, passive, and emotional – rather than the calculated, heartless and unemotional organiser of a poisoned Sunday lunch.'
Society is 'always shocked', Swinburne University's Loryn Sykes said, when it's reminded that women 'have the capacity for violence and murder, as we don't see women as a threat to our collective safety'.
'We associate violence with the realm of men (because) violence is seen as masculine behaviour,' Ms Sykes, who is hoping to complete a PhD in true-crime podcasting, told news.com.au.
Given the perception of male killers as 'a broader threat' to the general public than their female counterparts – especially if their victims are young women or girls – their crimes can be a catalyst for mass outrage, increased concern about the level of safety in the community, and even legislative change, she said.
'Murders committed by women, on the other hand, are not seen or framed as a threat … in the same way,' Ms Sykes said.
'Instead, the focus of media and public outrage is about condemning the individual women who perpetrated these murders rather than … what the crime says about the state of the world we live in.
'I think this is the reason why the public's response to this case is more about making fun of Erin Patterson – rather than being genuinely fearful of her.'
'A bit of a Hogwarts special'
Patterson's crimes evoke imagery of the Victorian era, Ms Sykes said, pointing to the cases of Christiana Edmunds, the so-called 'Chocolate Cream Killer' of 1871, and Marie-Fortunée Larfarge, who poisoned her husband with arsenic in 1840.
'Even though women killing their family members is quite rare, the narrative of women murdering via poisoning is familiar enough of a trope in true crime that news outlets can craft a story that audiences can recognise and follow along with easily,' she added.
The murder weapon itself plays into this narrative, Dr Easton said.
'Mushrooms are a mysterious and magical food – growing out of decay and … a key ingredient in the potions knocked up by witches,' she said.
'It offers up another stereotype Patterson can be associated with – the ugly, middle-aged witch or hag, again confirming her as evil. The mystery and magic of mushrooms and the mundanity of a Sunday lunch create contrast and interest in the story – a bit of a Hogwarts special.
'The fact that Erin's husband – and likely his larger family – were religious and therefore 'good' people further strengthens this contrast, and we enter the familiar narrative of the battle between good and evil.'
'Without the truth, Erin seems 'mad''
Most 'intriguing' of all – at least for Dr Easton – is Patterson's lack of a motive.
'Perhaps (the crime) would be more understandable had Erin's husband had an affair and his family supported him (in his infidelity), or if there was money involved which Erin would only inherit after the deaths of her husband and relatives,' she said.
'This remains a mystery in this case – and perhaps if the truth were out there, it would be a lot less interesting. Without the truth, Erin seems 'mad' – we can't see killing people as normal behaviour.'
Criminologist Dr Xanthe Mallett said on The Trial podcast earlier this week that she and renowned criminal psychologist Dr Tim Watson-Munro had 'picked apart' Patterson's personality as they observed the case, in a bid to understand what prompted her to target her extended family.
'It appears, or what I believe happened is, she has this simmering rage for Simon and perhaps felt that his family hadn't supported her,' Dr Mallett said, referring to text messages tendered as evidence during the trial that demonstrated 'some tensions within the family'.
'And therefore some of that rage is transferred to them, and she felt justified in harming them because of this … and therefore she is protecting herself.'