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Yeah, I think it was overkill. 2 death caps per serving (double the amount needed for them to die) and so the symptoms were more violent and the decline more rapid than normal. IMO
VERDICT WATCH Australia - 3 dead after eating wild mushrooms, Leongatha, Victoria, Aug 2023 #16 *Arrest*
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Yeah, I think it was overkill. 2 death caps per serving (double the amount needed for them to die) and so the symptoms were more violent and the decline more rapid than normal. IMO
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For reference
The four questions the jury must consider
www.abc.net.au
The four questions the jury must consider
The Erin Patterson jury has been sequestered. Here's what's happening
After more than two months of witness testimony, evidence and arguments, 12 people will decide the fate of accused murderer Erin Patterson.
www.abc.net.au
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The makeup of the jury has evened out substantially. The one man who was removed from the jury, and now two men being balloted off.
At the start of the trial, in late April, the jury comprised 10 men and five women ....
The 12-person jury panel who will decide Patterson's fate now includes seven men and five women ....
www.theage.com.au
7news.com.au
At the start of the trial, in late April, the jury comprised 10 men and five women ....
The 12-person jury panel who will decide Patterson's fate now includes seven men and five women ....
Erin Patterson murder trial day 40 LIVE: Jury begins its deliberations after judge finishes instructions; verdict must be unanimous
The jury in the trial of Erin Patterson, accused of murdering three people with a poisonous mushroom meal, is now deliberating its verdict.
Jury starts deliberations as Erin Patterson’s mushroom murder trial wraps up
The trial for the mother-of-two is on trial, accused of killing her three in-laws with poisonous death cap mushrooms, has wrapped up.
7news.com.au
For reference
The four questions the jury must consider
View attachment 598788
The Erin Patterson jury has been sequestered. Here's what's happening
After more than two months of witness testimony, evidence and arguments, 12 people will decide the fate of accused murderer Erin Patterson.
If only my exams in school had been this easy. MOO
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It's after 4:15 pm, so should be done for the day, but haven't seen any update.
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Spoke too soon.
www.dailymail.co.uk
Justice Beale has announced the jury will be sequestered for the evening and will continue deliberating at 10.30am on Tuesday.
‘You’ve had a long day, and you deserve a break,’ he said.
‘I hope it’s a pleasant break this evening.’
Justice Beale warned the jurors not to ‘second guess’ the instructions of the jury keepers.
‘I’ll be making sure no one interferes with you. It would be an awful shame if you [make an error with the jury keepers’ instructions] and as a result we have a mistrial.
‘So, thank you ladies and gentlemen.’
Justice Beale said he will be at court tomorrow while the jury is deliberating.
Erin Patterson mushroom murder trial LIVE updates
Follow Daily Mail Australia's live coverage of accused mushroom chef Erin Patterson's murder trial here.
Justice Beale has announced the jury will be sequestered for the evening and will continue deliberating at 10.30am on Tuesday.
‘You’ve had a long day, and you deserve a break,’ he said.
‘I hope it’s a pleasant break this evening.’
Justice Beale warned the jurors not to ‘second guess’ the instructions of the jury keepers.
‘I’ll be making sure no one interferes with you. It would be an awful shame if you [make an error with the jury keepers’ instructions] and as a result we have a mistrial.
‘So, thank you ladies and gentlemen.’
Justice Beale said he will be at court tomorrow while the jury is deliberating.
RSBM, BBM
Genuine question to anyone who can answer this from a strictly legal viewpoint. Can anyone explain for me the legal reasoning around why the judge would state the above?
I can only see relevance to questions 2 and 3 below if discussing motive which I assumed is not allowed? So there must be some other legal grounds for it and that is what I'm curious to know. Thanks in advance.
For reference
The four questions the jury must consider
View attachment 598788
The Erin Patterson jury has been sequestered. Here's what's happening
After more than two months of witness testimony, evidence and arguments, 12 people will decide the fate of accused murderer Erin Patterson.
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Imo, it's a ludicrous instruction. Everyone always has good reasons not to murder someone!
Monstradamus
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I think she would have cooked hers completely separately, and most likely the day before, so no chance of cross contamination. MOOAh yes, that's where I'm getting the 'tray'' from... still, I wouldn't think 6 individual steaks would fit on the one tray.... I'm thinking 4 to 5 would go on one tray and the final one on another. Just MOO though
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I'd be surprised if they don't, TBH.
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I'm still afraid to eat mushrooms after the last time I ate them around 10 years ago,
Worst stomach pains I've ever had. A few nights in hell.
Not foraged, bought from a supermarket.
The closest I've ever been to eating them was mushroom soup and it was fine.
I may be brave and try and eat one or two, one day in the future.
Worst stomach pains I've ever had. A few nights in hell.
Not foraged, bought from a supermarket.
The closest I've ever been to eating them was mushroom soup and it was fine.
I may be brave and try and eat one or two, one day in the future.
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So court hours for deliberating.
No verdict today.
No verdict today.
11:02 AM
Jun 30, 2025
Jury told to reject Erin's claim she didn't say she had cancer diagnosis
Justice Beale said the prosecution alleged that Erin lied about what she said at the lunch about ovarian cancer.
He took the jury to the evidence of Ian, who survived the lunch, and Erin’s estranged husband Simon, who spoke to Don after the lunch as he lay in hospital.
Ian testified that he recalled Erin announcing at the table that she had ovarian cancer.
Justice Beale also reminded the jury of Erin’s evidence.
She testified that she told the lunch guests she “might be needing treatment” in relation to ovarian cancer and was “undergoing investigations”.
Justice Beale said the prosecution argued that Ian was “firm” on what he heard.
“You should reject her claim that she didn’t say she had a diagnosis of cancer,” he said, summarising the prosecution argument.
But Justice Beale said the defence argued that Ian’s account and Erin’s account of what she said at the lunch were “not too far apart”.
Justice Beale added that the prosecution also alleged that Erin lied about planning to undergo gastric bypass surgery at the ENRICH Clinic in Melbourne.
He then moved on to how the jury can use the alleged credit lies, if they find them to be lies.
He said they can be used to determine whether the other things the accused said, to other witnesses and during her testimony, were true.
“But that is not to say just because she lied about one matter, you find she has been lying about everything else,” he said.
He warned the jury not to reason that simply because a person is shown to have told lies, they must be guilty.
11:25 AM
Jun 30, 2025
'Take care not to jump to conclusions': Judge warns jury
Justice Beale has moved on to “circumstantial” or “indirect” evidence versus “direct evidence”.
He said it was not safe, in a criminal trial, for a jury to engage in guess work.
He returned to the analogy used by the prosecution in its closing address about thinking about the evidence as puzzle pieces, which defence barrister Colin Mandy SC took issue with in his closing address.
“At the risk of upsetting Mr Mandy,” Justice Beale joked, before reiterating the puzzle analogy.
“While one piece may not be very helpful by itself, when all the pieces are put together the picture may become clear.
“However, when putting all the pieces together, you must take care not to jump to conclusions.”
Justice Beale reminded the jurors they must be satisfied that the prosecution has proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.
But he added that it was “almost impossible to prove anything with absolute certainty”.
“A reasonable doubt is not an imaginary or fanciful doubt,” he said.
“You cannot be satisfied that the accused is guilty of an offence if you have a reasonable doubt if she is guilty of the offence.”
11:35 AM
Jun 30, 2025
Was Erin's conduct conscious, voluntary and deliberate?
Justice Beale said to find Erin guilty of murder, her conduct must have been conscious, voluntary and deliberate.
He said the element of consciousness excludes the acts of an unconscious person, “such as someone who is sleepwalking”.
Voluntary means it must be willed conduct, “that is conduct that is controlled by the accused of her own actions”, Justice Beale said.
He said this excluded conduct where someone is not in control of their actions.
Justice Beale said for the act to have been deliberate, it cannot include accidental acts.
He said it is the defence’s case that Erin did not commit the act deliberately.
Turning to the element of intention, Justice Beale said the prosecution must prove beyond reasonable doubt that at the time Erin served up the beef wellingtons, she intended to kill her guests or cause them really serious injury.
“The prosecution contends that you should infer from the evidence that Erin Patterson had the appropriate state of mind at the relevant time,” he said.
He told the jury a person’s intention “may be inferred from what she said and did, and also from what she failed to say and do”.
“Look at her actions before, at the time of, and after the alleged offence,” he said.
Justice Beale told jurors that if they had any doubts, the “benefit of your doubts must” be given to the accused.
11:49 AM
Jun 30, 2025
How jury will decide on attempted murder charge regarding Ian Wilkinson
On the offence of attempted murder, Justice Beale said the alleged conduct must have been more than merely preparatory, immediately and not remotely connected with Ian’s illness and there must have been an intention to kill.
Justice Beale said it was not in dispute that Ian Wilkinson came very close to dying and that Erin’s conduct in serving him a poisoned beef wellington was more than merely preparatory and not remotely connected to causing his illness.
But he said for an attempted murder charge the intention, unlike murder, is “nothing less than an intention to kill”.
“Intent to cause really serious injury is not enough,” he said.
12:13 PM
Jun 30, 2025
Judge tells jury how to consider Erin's motive
After a break, Justice Beale has turned to the second part of his charge, which will involve him summarising the issues in the case and the related evidence.
He said the first issue related to whether Erin had “good reasons” to not kill her lunch guests.
Justice Beale took the jury back to the Facebook messages Erin sent her online friends about her in-laws in December 2022, where she said “this family, I swear to f–king god” and described them as a “lost cause”.
He said the prosecution argued that sometimes the “internal motivations” for murders are only known to the murderer themselves.
“You don’t have to know why a person does something in order to know they did it,” he said, summarising the prosecution argument.
“The question is not why she did it.”
On the other hand, he said the defence questioned why Erin would want to kill her in-laws given they were her children’s only grandparents.
He added that the defence argued that the Facebook messages were sent amid a child support dispute, which was a “flare-up” that soon subsided.
The defence also questioned why Erin would commit murder when she was in a “good place” at the time and would know that suspicion would fall on her as the cook of the meal.
Earlier, Justice Beale reminded the jury that the prosecution does not need to prove motive, only the elements of murder and attempted murder.
But he added that did not mean an absence of evidence of motive is irrelevant.
“It is a relevant consideration that you should take into account in the accused’s favour,” he said.
“Moreover, if you find that the accused had good reason to not kill or attempt to kill … that is a significant consideration by which to have regard.”
12:16 PM
Jun 30, 2025
The beef wellington recipe and how Erin prepared the meal
Justice Beale said the second issue related to Erin’s tendency to forage for mushrooms, referring the jury to the directions he gave them on this topic last week.
He then moved on to the third issue related to why Erin cooked individual beef wellingtons.
He reminded the jury that Erin said she used a best-selling RecipeTin Eats cookbook that called for a beef wellington log.
He said Erin testified that she deviated from the recipe because she could not find a beef tenderloin or “log” in her local area.
Justice Beale said the prosecution argued that Erin cooked individual beef wellingtons because it was “critical” for her to maintain control over the meal and ensure she did not consume a serve laced with death caps.
He said the prosecution also questioned why she would deviate from a recipe she had never cooked before for a “special lunch”.
Justice Beale said the defence did not discuss this topic in its closing address.
12:27 PM
Jun 30, 2025
The coloured plates and 'control' over the meal
Justice Beale has turned to the fourth issue related to whether Erin served the lunch on different coloured plates.
He returned to Ian Wilkinson’s evidence about the coloured plates. Ian told the jury the guests ate from larger grey plates, while Erin ate from a smaller, “orangey-tan” plate.
The Crown alleges she served herself on a different plate so she wouldn’t accidentally consume a poisoned beef wellington.
Heather Wilkinson had also commented on the different coloured plates.
Justice Beale said the Crown told the jury Ian had been a compelling and reliable witness who had “no doubt” about what he’d seen.
Erin denies this and says she didn’t own grey plates. She said she didn’t own a matching set of plates and that’s why they had eaten from different crockery.
Simon Patterson, under cross-examination, said Erin had a mismatch of plates and “didn’t own that many”.
Police didn’t find any grey plates during a search of Erin’s home.
The children recall seeing white plates in the dishwasher following the lunch.
Justice Beale said the defence argued the only way Erin could control who was served the poisonous portions was to mark the pastry before putting them in the oven, rather than using a different coloured plate.
12:52 PM
Jun 30, 2025
Plates and 'deceptions': Judge details final issues for jury to deliberate
Justice Beale has moved onto the fifth issue related to whether Erin allocated the plates.
He said the prosecution argued that she allocated her own plate by picking it up and carrying it to the table, while the defence argued that “without being told” Gail and Heather picked up two plates each and carried them to the table.
He said the sixth and final issue related to whether Erin engaged in incriminating conduct, referring the jury to the directions he gave them on this topic last week.
Justice Beale has turned to the “themes” of the closing addresses from the prosecution and defence to “stimulate” the jurors’ memories.
He reminded them of the “four calculated deceptions” alleged by the prosecution, namely that Erin fabricated a cancer claim, disguised lethal doses of poison as beef wellingtons, attempted to make it seem like she also suffered death cap mushroom poisoning and embarked on a “sustained cover-up”.
On the other hand, he said the defence declared to the jury that Erin was not on trial for being a liar and had “innocent”, “reasonable” explanations for her lies.
He added that the defence also listed at least four “ridiculous” propositions he said the prosecution had alleged, including that the devoted mother of two would commit murder and “blow up” her entire life “without any motive” and push ahead with her plot despite knowing the spotlight would be on her as the cook
12:53 PM
Jun 30, 2025
'No matter how you reach your verdict, it must be unanimous'
Justice Beale now moves to the verdict.
He tells the jurors their decision must be unanimous.
All 12 jurors must agree on each of the four separate charges that Erin Patterson is guilty, or not guilty.
He explained their reasons for reaching their decisions need not be the same.
“What is important is that no matter how you reach your verdict, it must be unanimous,” he said.
Once a verdict is reached on each of the charges, a buzzer in the jury will be pushed and the parties will be notified to return to court, Justice Beale said.
The jury will deliberate between 10.30am-1pm and 2.15pm-4.15pm Monday to Saturday until a verdict is reached.
Their discussions will take place in the jury room at the court.
Justice Beale reminded them to only discuss the case with each other and only when they are all together within the confines of the jury room.
“Don’t discuss it when you’re at the hotel, don’t get into little groups and have discussions about the case,” he said.
The jury has now been given a short break ahead of the balloting off process.
1:18 PM
Jun 30, 2025
'Say your goodbyes': Two male jurors ballotted off moments before deliberations begin
Justice Beale told the jurors to “say your goodbyes” during the break ahead of the ballot process.
Two numbers will be randomly selected and those two jurors must get up and move out of the jury box.
They will be escorted to another room where they can retrieve their luggage and go home, where they will have no further interaction with the remaining jurors.
Justice Beale thanked everyone for their service.
“A very warm thank you to those two people who will be balloted off,” he said.
“I don’t know whether you’ll feel relieved or frustrated but be assured you have made an important contribution to the administration of justice through your service.”
Justice Beale said he would be giving a dispensation to all jurors, including the two balloted off, to excuse them from jury duty for the next 15 years.
“My heartfelt thanks,” he said.
After a break, the jurors re-entered the courtroom, holding their iPads and the trial chronology.
The associate to Justice Beale grabbed a wooden box with the juror numbers inside.
He hoisted it above his head, pulled out two numbers and declared them to the courtroom.
Two male jurors stood up and walked out of the jury box.
They handed in their iPads and were escorted out of court.
The remainder of the jurors took an oath or an affirmation to not discuss the case with anyone else.
They then retired to consider their verdicts.
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I'm not a lawyer, but I think I can help answer this.
The judge is guiding the jury on how to assess circumstantial evidence, which is common in murder cases involving poisoning. In Victoria, motive is not required to prove murder, but jurors can consider whether the accused had strong reasons not to commit the crime, because that could make guilt less likely.
This isn’t about proving innocence, it’s about helping the jury decide whether guilt is the only reasonable explanation. That’s the key legal test for circumstantial cases, from cases like Shepherd v R (1990), where the High Court held that jurors must exclude all reasonable alternative explanations before finding guilt.
A judge may say this to ensure the jury fairly considers the full context, including any factors that might logically point away from guilt. It helps safeguard against assuming guilt based purely on suspicion, and reinforces the standard of beyond reasonable doubt.
The judge's direction also acts as a safeguard against appeal, ensuring the jury properly considers alternative explanations and doesn't infer guilt without excluding reasonable doubt.
I know that the judges charges seem biased, I agree - but objectively speaking, it is critical that the judge gives the jury such instructions to balance fairness and justice. IMO only.
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If someone is found not guilty of causing someone's death then they have been found not guilty in a court of law.
It doesn't mean then if the public disagrees, a way would be found to "make them pay" for something they'd been found not guilty of.
It would take prosecutors trying for a new trial
It doesn't mean then if the public disagrees, a way would be found to "make them pay" for something they'd been found not guilty of.
It would take prosecutors trying for a new trial
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We won't see anything more until the jury comes back into court. Either with a question or with a verdict or hung jury
<modsnip>
“Justice Beale said he would be giving a dispensation to all jurors, including the two balloted off, to excuse them from jury duty for the next 15 years.”
“Justice Beale said he would be giving a dispensation to all jurors, including the two balloted off, to excuse them from jury duty for the next 15 years.”
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