GUILTY Australia - 3 dead after eating wild mushrooms, Leongatha, Victoria, Aug 2023 *Arrest* #20

[LinasK]

But we are not the US.

I just don't see any value in making an offender have psych evaluation. It would not be an honest evaluation. IMO

Yes it would because psych professionals are trained to spot lies.

 

[drsleuth]

Yes it would because psych professionals are trained to spot lies.

And what if they just flat out refuse to talk???

 

[Observe_dont_Absorb]

I wonder if she'd have been sentenced any differently were she younger. In other words, I'm wondering if perhaps subconsciously, the judge had in mind that she would be in her eighties in those conditions if she ever gets paroled, but would he have sentenced differently if she was a twenty-or-thirty-year-old?

I really cannot work out the logic of factoring in prison conditions. For goodness sake, move her to a different prison out of state if needs be, if she can't be housed within guidelines at the current prison. When does the gravity and egregiousness of the crimes and future risks to the public outweigh her rights? Who is to say what he is basing his decision on will be the same ten years from now?

It should have been LWOP for Erin. IMO

Prison conditions are surely far worse with a covert zero empathy poisoner amongst the women. So by that rationale she should go free. This sentence doesn't make sense to me. I think the general public should be assured that EP is never going to be amongst us for the rest of our lives.

If she goes to appeal can she end up with an even harsher sentence? I hope so.

JMO MOO

 

[JBowie]

And what if they just flat out refuse to talk?

My guess is that she would refuse any such assessment until the coin dropped that going along with the process would make things easier for her inside.

I gather that prisons usually assess prisoners for the potential of self-harm, etc, before classifying them as to where and with whom they will be incarcerated.

In EP's case, maybe they have bypassed all of that given her notoriety, etc.

 

[Scuffy35]

No, she’s serving the sentences concurrently.

Concurrent sentences are criminal sentences that are served at the same time rather than one after another. When multiple sentences are imposed concurrently, the total time an offender serves is equal to the length of the longest individual sentence. This sentencing approach, in contrast to cumulative or consecutive sentences, allows for the total time to reflect the totality of the offending, rather than multiplying the sentences for each offense.

The longest individual sentence was life, not 33 years.

 

[BreakingNews]

It shouldn't be up to her to refuse. It should be mandated by the Prosecution/Judge. That's how it's done in the US. Offenders don't get to refuse Psych evals.

It is easy enough to fake a psych test. There is no absolute way to determine a mental health. Not like a blood test which would prove conclusively. Psych tests are subjective. She is intelligent enough fudge it.

 

[BreakingNews]

Yes it would because psych professionals are trained to spot lies.

Not foolproof.

 

[LinasK]

Either way- if she HAD actually purchased them ( she didn't and no Asian grocer is going to sell Death Caps) or accidentally foraged them, it still doesn't account for Erin & kids lack of illness. The only conclusion is that they ate beef that didn't have Death Caps added to them/infused/near them.

It's clear that her "diarrhea" act fooled no one, not trained nurses, nor the jury, especially since her lab values were normal.

 

[LinasK]

It is easy enough to fake a psych test. There is no absolute way to determine a mental health. Not like a blood test which would prove conclusively. Psych tests are subjective. She is intelligent enough fudge it.

Do you really think that trained Psych professionals haven't seen fakers before? Lori Vallow Daybell briefly got away with it, then got determined Competent to stand trial. Jodi Arias tried stuff too and didn't get away with it.

 

[Detechtive]

Yep, the overworked tabloid term "insane wealth" may apply to Elon Musk, but hardly to EP.

Given that she was (AFAIK) unemployed, I do wonder what she was using for cash flow to cover weekly expenses, etc. Simon was contributing something, but only a proportion.

Even $1m in a bank account would give you a pretty nice income off interest when you have no debts, IMO

 

[Scuffy35]

Even $1m in a bank account would give you a pretty nice income off interest when you have no debts, IMO

Also possible she had rental income if she treated the other couple of properties (Mount Waverley and one at Korumburra) and as Investment properties and were leased out. If that is the case, she also would have had to pay capital gains tax when she sold those properties.

IMO

 

[Scuffy35]

Yes it would because psych professionals are trained to spot lies.

A proper psych evaluation and report, I imagine, would not just solely rely on a sit-down structured interview, as someone like EP is a master manipulator, compulsive liar (proven during her murder trial) and also would be very on guard on how she responded to questions and any unsolicited comments she might make.

For this reason, I imagine psych evaluation and report would also have to weigh very heavily on her historical behaviors, through whatever evidence might exist (a lot already in the trial transcripts) and also interviews with sources such as family members, partners and coworkers etc.

IMO
(Edited for grammar and some better wording)

 

[Kemug]

It boggles my mind how she could be so  stupid as to hide deathcap mushrooms in a meal where actual mushrooms were in the recipe. She had already gone to all the trouble of grinding the deathcaps, why didn't she just add the powder to a curry dish? I suppose it was meant to be some sort of double bluff, or provide a fallback excuse of foraging for mushrooms. Which she then stupidly didn't claim. Sorry Erin, you were stupid!

 

[BreakingNews]

Do you really think that trained Psych professionals haven't seen fakers before? Lori Vallow Daybell briefly got away with it, then got determined Competent to stand trial. Jodi Arias tried stuff too and didn't get away with it.

How do you think people get out on parole, then kill or commit other crimes. Adrian Bayley even said how he told the psych what he knew they wanted to hear.

 

[Monstradamus]

It boggles my mind how she could be so  stupid as to hide deathcap mushrooms in a meal where actual mushrooms were in the recipe. She had already gone to all the trouble of grinding the deathcaps, why didn't she just add the powder to a curry dish? I suppose it was meant to be some sort of double bluff, or provide a fallback excuse of foraging for mushrooms. Which she then stupidly didn't claim. Sorry Erin, you were stupid!

It was a fall-back protection, I think.
To claim they were accidentally mixed in with other mushrooms, just in case Plan A didn't work.
If DCs were in a dish that had no mushrooms in it, it would have taken much longer to pinpoint the toxin, perhaps?
Not sure why she didn't claim it was an accident from the start (once the "jig" was up), that was pretty dumb. She could have gotten away with a much lighter sentence, imo.

 

[JBowie]

Arrival​

Upon arrival at any of Victoria's prisons, prisoners undergo reception, assessment and orientation.

. . .


Assessment
Following reception, prisoners undergo an initial risk assessment to identify any special needs and are referred to the appropriate prison services (for example, disability services or interpreter services).

The assessment process includes a health examination conducted by medical staff. When a prisoner fits the criteria, a mental health assessment is carried out by psychiatric staff. [bbm]

For more about health services in the prison system, see Health care.

Following assessment, prisoners are placed in prison units.

https://www.corrections.vic.gov.au/being-in-prison/going-to-prison/arrival

 

[Scuffy35]

Arrival​

Upon arrival at any of Victoria's prisons, prisoners undergo reception, assessment and orientation.

. . .


Assessment
Following reception, prisoners undergo an initial risk assessment to identify any special needs and are referred to the appropriate prison services (for example, disability services or interpreter services).

The assessment process includes a health examination conducted by medical staff. When a prisoner fits the criteria, a mental health assessment is carried out by psychiatric staff. [bbm]

For more about health services in the prison system, see Health care.

Following assessment, prisoners are placed in prison units.

https://www.corrections.vic.gov.au/being-in-prison/going-to-prison/arrival

I am not sure if "a mental health assessment" upon arrival at Victoria's prisons is a full blown mental health assessment and diagnosis. I have no idea, but is there possibly different levels (eg in detail and thoroughness) of assessment and this is a kind of entry level assessment?

 

[JBowie]

I am not sure if "a mental health assessment" upon arrival at Victoria's prisons is a full blown mental health assessment and diagnosis. I have no idea, but is there possibly different levels (eg in detail and thoroughness) of assessment and this is a kind of entry level assessment?

My guess is it would be a quick assessment to try to determine if there are any signs of issues that will be immediately problematic -- such as the need for close monitoring, isolation, etc.

As for deeper analysis, I'm not sure how they are initiated, but there are numerous reports and videos by prison shrinks who held sessions with psychopaths and in many of those it's a battle of wits between the psycho and the shrink -- usually a form of entertainment to break the boredom by the former.

 

[Marg944]

I’ve found a template on how to decide a prisoners security rating on entering a Victorian prison….

https://files.corrections.vic.gov.au/2025-02/SMM-AC4-Pre-Reception_Screening_Assessments.docx

I can’t find a “mental health assessment” template though.

https://www.corrections.vic.gov.au/about-the-corrections-system/frameworks-policies-and-standards/sentence-management-manual-0

 

[mamamama9873]

And what if they just flat out refuse to talk???

Yeah would just be another waste of tax payers’ funds to make reluctant prisoners take psych tests