The jury has retired to determine the outcome for an Australian woman charged with murdering three relatives of her husband using a beef Wellington lunch laced with toxic mushrooms.
Deliberations began for the jurors regarding 50-year-old Erin Patterson following a nine-week trial.
“You need to establish whether any of her statements were false,” Judge Christopher Beale stated in his closing instructions.
“Consider all the evidence presented and draw logical conclusions based solely on what you accept as evidence.”
The jurors are required to reach a unanimous decision—either guilty or not guilty—on each of the four counts against Ms. Patterson, as emphasized by Judge Beale.
Ms. Patterson faces charges of murdering her estranged husband’s parents and aunt in July 2023 by contaminating their beef-and-pastry dish with death cap mushrooms, the most lethal fungi in existence.
She is also accused of attempting to murder a fourth guest—her husband’s uncle Ian Wilkinson—who survived after an extended hospital stay.
The jury, initially composed of 14 members, was reduced to 12 by ballot before commencing their deliberations at the court in Morwell, southeast of Melbourne.
The victims were diagnosed with poisoning from death cap mushrooms by medical professionals.
The jury will be sequestered at night during their deliberation period.
Ms. Patterson has denied all accusations, insisting that the mushroom poisoning of the beef Wellington—prepared in individual servings—was an unfortunate mistake.
The trial meticulously examined the circumstances surrounding the meal at her residence in the agricultural village of Leongatha in Victoria state.
Her lunch guests included Don and Gail Patterson, the elderly parents of her estranged husband Simon.
Places were also arranged for Simon’s maternal aunt Heather and her husband Ian.
‘Uncomfortable’
Simon was invited but opted not to attend, stating he felt “uncomfortable.”
Shortly after the meal, his parents and aunt succumbed to organ failure, leaving only Mr. Wilkinson among the four guests to survive.
The prosecution asserts that Ms. Patterson intentionally foraged for death cap mushrooms and concealed them in the meal with the intention of murdering her guests.
It is claimed she avoided consuming the lethal mushrooms herself and pretended to be ill afterwards to evade suspicion, according to the prosecution.
Conversely, Ms. Patterson’s defense attorney argued it was a “tragic accident” with no intent to kill or harm anyone.
Ian Wilkinson survived after an extended hospital stay.
Her attorney claims she lied to authorities out of panic post-lunch, including her statements about the mushroom’s source, fearing accountability.
Ms. Patterson informed investigators that she didn’t possess a food dehydrator, which was allegedly used to prepare the toxic mushrooms.
However, security footage showed her discarding a dehydrator at a nearby waste facility, and forensic analysis discovered trace amounts of death cap mushrooms on the equipment.
“No one can predict how they might react in a similar situation,” Defence Lawyer Colin Mandy argued during the trial.
Ms. Patterson consumed the same dish as her guests but did not become as ill; her defense suggested she has an eating disorder and made herself vomit afterward.
