Australia's Erin Patterson is facing life in prison after being found guilty this afternoon of triple-murder.
The 50-year-old appeared emotionless as a jury delivered its verdict to the Supreme Court, ending seven days' deliberations.
It agreed Patterson deliberately fed members of her estranged husband's family a beef wellington laced with death cap mushrooms, killing three and attempting to kill a fourth.
1News Australia correspondent Aziz Al Sa'afin says media from around the world have been covering this case ahead of the verdict.
"There's been 125 pieces of evidence that have been put forward to the jury, they've had to analyse an 86-page chronology of the testimony that's happened over the last 10 weeks - so as you can imagine, there's a really big responsibility for this jury to get it right."
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Mushroom murderer. Aaron Patterson has been found guilty on all
counts this afternoon. This after deliberation of more than a
week by the jury. They found her guilty the murder
of Gail and Donald Patterson, her in laws, and Heather
Wilkinson guilty. Also the attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson, Heather's husband,
who survived after being in a coma. Aziz Al Saphine
(00:20):
is One News Australia correspondent with US tonight as these
how did that go down in the court?
Speaker 2 (00:26):
Oh, Kelder Ryan look att has been quite a hectic day.
I can tell you that much as those charges were
read out, Aaron Patterson sat there quite neutral faced as
she heard her fate. And look, it has been a
bit of a I suppose media circus. A lot of
people would have described. There has been media from all
(00:46):
around the world covering this case. I spent a lot
of time in more Will in the past couple of weeks.
I can tell you it has been an interesting case
to cover. That luck. Yes, she has been found guilty
on all charges, those three murder charges and that one
attempted murder charge. Now, when those charges were read out,
(01:08):
When the verdict was read out, Justice Bhl of course
had thanked the jury, apologizing that this case has gone
on for as long as it has. I'll remind you
it was only put down for six weeks. We are
now in its ninth eleventh week, and so he apologized
to the jury, but really just thanked them for their service.
(01:29):
You know, there's been one hundred and twenty five pieces
of evidence that have been put forward to them, that
had to analyze an eighty six page chronology of all
the testimony it's happened in the past ten weeks, and
so as you can imagine, a really big responsibility for
this jury to get it right.
Speaker 1 (01:46):
Yeah, and they've certainly come to a decision, though it
took them a while. There were a few slam dunk arguments,
you know, there was a different colored plates, there was
the throwing the dehydrator away. In the end, jury obviously
finding this stuff pretty convincingsolutely.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Yes, that's right. So Nanette Rogers for the prosecution essentially
based the case on what she called the four deceptions,
the four core deceptions that Aaron Patterson took part in
and what ultimately was a sustained cover up. The first
of course, being about lying about having cancer, and that
(02:24):
is essentially Rottennette Rodgers said Aaron Patterson did to law
her family in to that lunch on July twenty nine,
twenty twenty three. She said that Aaron Patterson tried to
gain sympathy in that act and as well as law
of them. Really just get them all there in one
one spot. Now, the second deception that she talked about,
(02:47):
as you mentioned, was where the mushrooms came from? Now?
During her testimony, and I'll remind you, Aaron Patterson herself
took the stand, which she didn't need to for eight
days in the witness box, and she talked to out
she was asked about rather where the mushrooms came from? Now.
Sally and Atkinson was the health official that was tasked
(03:08):
with investigating this particular this particular part of the story
after the lunch, and what she said in her testimony
was that Aaron Patterson was really hard to get a
hold of that. When she did get a hold of her,
her story kept changing. And you might remember she said
she gave multiple accounts of where these mushrooms came from,
(03:31):
at one point mentioning an Asian grosser couldn't mention it
by name and then changing it to a supermarket, a
Woolli's of sorts. And so the problem with that was
what Sally Anne Atkinson talked about in the trial was
that it created, you know, a public health scare, and
(03:51):
so they were worried that there were potentially these mushrooms
in the supermarkets that were getting other people sick, and
so that was that was really part of her testimony.
The third, as you also mentioned, is the third dehydrator.
So initially Aaron Patterson told police she ever owned one
and then later admitted to dumping it after there was
(04:12):
evidence presented in court of CCTV of a woman dumping
a food dehydrator in court, which, by the way, later
tested for deathcap mushrooms. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
Never a great look is it. He's a fascinating case
that we have followed closely, just very quickly. How long
could she get.
Speaker 2 (04:32):
I mean, this could be life in prison, So with that,
I think it's around forty five to fifty years and
in victoria. But look, we just don't know what could happen.
There might be an appeals process. The court is going
to convene tomorrow and then we'll find out what happens
after that, whether there's any when sentencing could be and
(04:55):
of course I'll remind you as well that is of
course when the defense will come out and really make
a case for what kind of sentence Aaron Patterson will get.
Speaker 1 (05:02):
Ause these also find One News Australia Correspondent.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
For more from Hither Duplessy Allen Drive. Listen live to
news Talks.
Speaker 1 (05:09):
It'd be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast
on iHeartRadio
Mushroom murderer. Aaron Patterson has been found guilty on all
counts this afternoon. This after deliberation of more than a
week by the jury. They found her guilty the murder
of Gail and Donald Patterson, her in laws, and Heather
Wilkinson guilty. Also the attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson, Heather's husband,
who survived after being in a coma. Aziz Al Saphine
(00:20):
is One News Australia correspondent with US tonight as these
how did that go down in the court?
Speaker 2 (00:26):
Oh, Kelder Ryan look att has been quite a hectic day.
I can tell you that much as those charges were
read out, Aaron Patterson sat there quite neutral faced as
she heard her fate. And look, it has been a
bit of a I suppose media circus. A lot of
people would have described. There has been media from all
(00:46):
around the world covering this case. I spent a lot
of time in more Will in the past couple of weeks.
I can tell you it has been an interesting case
to cover. That luck. Yes, she has been found guilty
on all charges, those three murder charges and that one
attempted murder charge. Now, when those charges were read out,
(01:08):
When the verdict was read out, Justice Bhl of course
had thanked the jury, apologizing that this case has gone
on for as long as it has. I'll remind you
it was only put down for six weeks. We are
now in its ninth eleventh week, and so he apologized
to the jury, but really just thanked them for their service.
(01:29):
You know, there's been one hundred and twenty five pieces
of evidence that have been put forward to them, that
had to analyze an eighty six page chronology of all
the testimony it's happened in the past ten weeks, and
so as you can imagine, a really big responsibility for
this jury to get it right.
Speaker 1 (01:46):
Yeah, and they've certainly come to a decision, though it
took them a while. There were a few slam dunk arguments,
you know, there was a different colored plates, there was
the throwing the dehydrator away. In the end, jury obviously
finding this stuff pretty convincingsolutely.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Yes, that's right. So Nanette Rogers for the prosecution essentially
based the case on what she called the four deceptions,
the four core deceptions that Aaron Patterson took part in
and what ultimately was a sustained cover up. The first
of course, being about lying about having cancer, and that
(02:24):
is essentially Rottennette Rodgers said Aaron Patterson did to law
her family in to that lunch on July twenty nine,
twenty twenty three. She said that Aaron Patterson tried to
gain sympathy in that act and as well as law
of them. Really just get them all there in one
one spot. Now, the second deception that she talked about,
(02:47):
as you mentioned, was where the mushrooms came from? Now?
During her testimony, and I'll remind you, Aaron Patterson herself
took the stand, which she didn't need to for eight
days in the witness box, and she talked to out
she was asked about rather where the mushrooms came from? Now.
Sally and Atkinson was the health official that was tasked
(03:08):
with investigating this particular this particular part of the story
after the lunch, and what she said in her testimony
was that Aaron Patterson was really hard to get a
hold of that. When she did get a hold of her,
her story kept changing. And you might remember she said
she gave multiple accounts of where these mushrooms came from,
(03:31):
at one point mentioning an Asian grosser couldn't mention it
by name and then changing it to a supermarket, a
Woolli's of sorts. And so the problem with that was
what Sally Anne Atkinson talked about in the trial was
that it created, you know, a public health scare, and
(03:51):
so they were worried that there were potentially these mushrooms
in the supermarkets that were getting other people sick, and
so that was that was really part of her testimony.
The third, as you also mentioned, is the third dehydrator.
So initially Aaron Patterson told police she ever owned one
and then later admitted to dumping it after there was
(04:12):
evidence presented in court of CCTV of a woman dumping
a food dehydrator in court, which, by the way, later
tested for deathcap mushrooms. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
Never a great look is it. He's a fascinating case
that we have followed closely, just very quickly. How long
could she get.
Speaker 2 (04:32):
I mean, this could be life in prison, So with that,
I think it's around forty five to fifty years and
in victoria. But look, we just don't know what could happen.
There might be an appeals process. The court is going
to convene tomorrow and then we'll find out what happens
after that, whether there's any when sentencing could be and
(04:55):
of course I'll remind you as well that is of
course when the defense will come out and really make
a case for what kind of sentence Aaron Patterson will get.
Speaker 1 (05:02):
Ause these also find One News Australia Correspondent.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
For more from Hither Duplessy Allen Drive. Listen live to
news Talks.
Speaker 1 (05:09):
It'd be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast
on iHeartRadio
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