The trial of an Australian woman accused of poisoning her ex-husband’s family with mushrooms commenced this week, almost a year after she entered a plea of not guilty.
Erin Patterson, 50, faces three charges of murder and one charge of attempted murder. Initially, she was charged with two counts of attempted murder, but one of those charges was dismissed earlier this week.
On Wednesday, Patterson was present in the Victoria state Supreme Court, where prosecutor Nanette Rogers informed the jurors that the accused had prepared and served a meal of beef Wellington, mashed potatoes, and green beans at her residence in Leongatha on July 29, 2023.
Her guests included her in-laws, Gail and Don Patterson, both 70; Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson, 66; and Wilkinson’s husband, Ian Wilkinson, 68.
Erin Patterson allegedly invited family members over for lunch, where she served Beef Wellington, though the next day, all four guests were hospitalized for poisoning by death cap mushrooms. (Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)
Still, Patterson’s lawyer, Colin Mandy, told jurors his client never had cancer. He also said guests were poisoned by mushrooms Patterson served, though the poisoning was a “terrible accident.”
Rogers advised the jury that she would not be providing a motive for the poisonings, saying, “You do not have to be satisfied what the motive was, or even that there was a motive.”
Erin Patterson eventually went to the hospital complaining about diarrhea and nausea two days after serving beef Wellington. But at that point, her guests had been diagnosed with suffering from death cap poisoning.
She later told authorities she cooked with a mixture of mushrooms she purchased from a supermarket and dried mushrooms from an Asian food store, denying that she had foraged for wild mushrooms.
But Mandy said his client lied about not foraging for wild mushrooms.
“She did forage for mushrooms,” Mandy told the jury. “Just so that we make that clear. She denies that she ever deliberately sought out death cap mushrooms.”
The trial was adjourned until Thursday and is expected to continue for six weeks.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
