The Facts of Erin Patterson's Murder Trial: Evidence, Motives, and Conflicting Testimonies

As they retire to consider their verdicts, the jurors in Erin Patterson's triple-murder trial have no shortage of evidence to reflect upon. More than 50 witnesses have given testimony and the hearings have stretched for nine weeks. Here are the people and places at the heart of the trial.

The lunch guests

The trial centres on a lunch hosted by Erin at her Leongatha home in Victoria's South Gippsland region on July 29, 2023. Erin hosted four people that day: her parents-in-law Don and Gail Patterson, along with Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson and her husband Ian. Erin's estranged husband Simon Patterson was also invited, but turned down the offer. Don, Gail and Heather all died from death cap mushroom poisoning after the beef Wellington lunch, while Ian survived after weeks in hospital. Prosecutors have alleged that Erin deliberately laced the meal with death caps. But the 50-year-old has maintained her innocence, telling the court that foraged mushrooms made their way into the meal by mistake.

Family tensions in months leading up to lunch

Prosecutors did not allege a specific motive for Ms Patterson to murder three relatives and attempt to murder a fourth. But they did take the jury through what they alleged was growing anger and resentment the accused felt towards the Pattersons. The court heard that by late 2022, there was a disagreement between Ms Patterson and her estranged husband over finances, including school and doctor's fees for their children. At one point, the court heard Erin had tried to bring in her in-laws — Don and Gail Patterson — to help mediate the situation.

The evidence on foraged mushrooms

In the years leading up to the lunch, Erin's life was largely based in the towns of Leongatha and Korumburra. The two South Gippsland communities sit pretty close to one another, each with populations of a few thousand people. It was in this region that Erin Patterson told the court she began foraging mushrooms during Victoria's COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020 and 2021. Eventually, she said she felt she had gathered enough knowledge to taste some of the mushrooms she had foraged during walks near the two towns.

The search for Asian grocer mushrooms

As well as foraging mushrooms before the lunch, Erin said she had bought dried mushrooms from an Asian grocer in Melbourne's south-east. Erin told the court the grocer-bought mushrooms were ultimately mixed up with foraged mushrooms in a plastic container in her Leongatha pantry. She said it was this container of mixed mushrooms she later drew upon to remedy a \"bland\" mushroom paste for the beef Wellington lunch — with disastrous consequences.

Conflicting evidence on plates at lunch

The day of the lunch, Erin finalised the special meal of individually parcelled beef Wellingtons for her guests. She rejected a prosecution claim that deviations to the recipe were made to ensure only her guests were served meals laced with deadly mushrooms. Erin told the court she and her guests ate from plates that may have been black, white, and red on top and black underneath and nobody was given any one particular plate.

Guests revealed to have suffered from death cap poisoning

In the days after the lunch, the guests began falling ill. Ultimately, Erin and the four guests were transferred to hospitals in Melbourne, where Gail, Don and Heather later died. Ian survived after a weeks-long stay in intensive care. Doctors have told the court the medical tests which revealed signs of death cap poisoning in the four lunch guests did not show the same markers for Erin.

Police begin investigating

A week after the lunch, homicide detectives visited Erin at her Leongatha home and told her they were investigating the deadly lunch. In the August 5 search, they seized a number of devices, including a mobile phone which the court heard Erin had performed three factory resets on. Detectives returned months later, when they ran a second search of her home, and ultimately laid murder and attempted murder charges against Ms Patterson in November.

According to the source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation.