A courtroom in regional Victoria has been occupied for five weeks with the trial of Erin Patterson, a 50-year-old mother charged with three counts of murder and one of attempted murder following a toxic mushroom meal she prepared for her estranged husband’s family on July 29, 2023. Patterson has pleaded not guilty, asserting that the poisonings were unintentional and the result of a tragic accident.
The culinary incident resulted in the hospitalisation of Patterson’s former in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson, both aged 70, as well as Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson, 66, who later succumbed to the effects of suspected death cap mushroom poisoning. Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson, was the only member of the family to survive the meal.
On Monday, Sally Ann Atkinson, a senior adviser from the Victorian health department, provided testimony in court. She recounted being notified by a doctor on July 31 that four out of five family members who shared the meal were experiencing severe illness believed to be related to toxic mushroom consumption. Due to the rarity of such cases, Atkinson escalated the matter to her manager for further investigation.
During her communications with Patterson, Atkinson noted that the latter reported experiencing “explosive diarrhoea” after the dinner. When questioned about the beef Wellington’s ingredients, Patterson mentioned using a combination of fresh mushrooms purchased from Woolworths and dried mushrooms bought from an Asian grocery in April 2023. Initially, Patterson had planned to use the dried mushrooms for a different dish but claimed they emitted an unusual odour, leading her to refrain from using them.
However, upon a subsequent conversation with Atkinson on August 2, Patterson provided conflicting statements regarding the mushrooms and her meal preparations. Atkinson pointed out that Patterson changed her narrative about the usage of the dried mushrooms and the grocery shopping timeline, which raised concerns.
Moreover, between August 1 and 2, Patterson did not respond to numerous attempts from Atkinson to contact her, which included text messages, phone calls, and a voicemail. It wasn’t until assistance was engaged from child protective services that Atkinson managed to reconnect with Patterson.
Investigators conducted searches in 14 stores across Oakleigh, Clayton, and Mount Waverley but found no mushrooms that matched Patterson’s description. Currently, Patterson’s defence team has yet to cross-examine Atkinson, and the trial is set to resume on Tuesday morning.
This case has attracted considerable attention, prompting discussions on various media platforms, including a podcast series titled “The Mushroom Trial: Say Grace,” produced by Nine and The Age.