Mushroom trial
An offer of forgiveness and a ‘tsunami’ of grief laid bare by Erin Patterson’s victims
Prosecutors want mushroom cook Patterson to die in jail for her premeditated murder of three lunch guests. But one of her victims extended an unlikely olive branch.
- Erin Pearson
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A hair straightener, a fan and lots of wool. Inside Erin Patterson’s prison cell
A portrait of the mushroom lunch killer’s life behind bars reveals her isolation, the small courtyard where she can see daylight and her unit block mates.
- Erin Pearson
The ‘elaborate’ cover-up after the beef Wellington lunch and the single word that might have changed everything
September 8 is the date Erin Patterson will learn her fate – whether that be life in prison without the possibility of parole, as the prosecution has requested, or life with the possibility of the poisoner one day walking outside of jail once again.
- Erin Pearson
- Perspective
- Courts
Erin Patterson’s children hover offstage, haunted by her crimes
The poisoner’s two children have been granted the small mercy of remaining physically absent from the courtroom tumult.
- Tony Wright
‘I only feel half alive’: Mushroom lunch survivor reveals heartbreak of life without his wife
An emotional Ian Wilkinson wiped tears from his eyes as he spoke of his love for his late wife, Heather, ending his victim impact statement with kindness instead of hate. Read the full transcript here.
‘The jury must be relieved’: Why we are now hearing evidence banned from mushroom murder trial
Erin Patterson’s case has prompted questions about how and why evidence wasn’t disclosed to the jury during the marathon 10-week trial.
- Erin Pearson
The whole truth and nothing but the truth. Or was it?
Previously suppressed evidence from investigations into Erin Patterson’s mushroom murders has now been released, prompting questions over whether the jury really heard the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
- Erin Pearson
The four key moments from Erin Patterson’s police interview
Excerpts of one of the 2023 police interviews with Erin Patterson show the moments she lied to investigators, about foraging for mushrooms and dumping a food dehydrator at a tip.
- Marta Pascual Juanola
Erin Patterson's relationship with her in-laws
On August 5, 2023, as detectives interview her at Wonthaggi police station over the circumstances of the lunch, Erin Patterson says her in-laws had "never done anything wrong by me ever".
The Department of Health investigation
As she is interviewed by detectives on August 5, 2023, Erin Patterson says she has been very helpful to the department of health and discloses she had recently done a "clean-out" of the pantry and fridge at her property in Mount Waverley.