
Erin Patterson gives evidence for a second day in mushroom deaths trial
Erin Patterson gives evidence for a second day in mushroom deaths trial
Published 3 June 2025, 8:22 am
Accused triple-murderer Erin Patterson says she accepts death cap mushrooms were in the deadly lunch she served relatives at her Gippsland home. In her second day of evidence, Patterson told the Supreme Court how she developed a fascination for wild mushrooms in the years leading up to the family gathering.
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Herald Sun
16 minutes ago
- Herald Sun
Former Whittlesea mayor Aidan McLindon told suspension is ‘unlawful'
Don't miss out on the headlines from North. Followed categories will be added to My News. A former Melbourne mayor who was suspended under new powers recently created by the state government wants to challenge the decision in the Supreme Court. Whittlesea mayor Aidan McLindon was suspended for six months on April 16 following a recommendation by Local Government Minister Nick Staikos. It was the first time the power had been used since it was introduced in October as part of amendments to the Local Government Act 2020. The change allows the Local Government Minister to recommend a councillor be suspended if they are found to create a serious risk to health and safety or prevented the council from performing its functions. In a written statement provided to the Herald Sun Mr McLindon said he had received advice from senior layers suggesting Mr Staikos had acted 'unlawfully'. 'As a result of this advice I will be applying to the Supreme Court to judicially review the actions of the Minister,' Mr McLindon wrote. Mr Staikos said Mr McLindon was suspended following a report by municipal monitors appointed to Whittlesea Council and other information provided. 'As the matter is expected to be subject to litigation, it would be inappropriate to comment any further,' Mr Staikos said. Mr Staikos recommended the sanction against Mr McLindon six weeks after Whittlesea chief executive Craig Lloyd banned the mayor from attending council premises in person — including the meetings he chaired — after he was accused of intimidating staff and other councillors. The ban followed a vote of no confidence in Mr McLindon by the city's other councillors. Immediately after his suspension Mr McLindon said he was being punished for speaking up for rate freezes and against rainbow flags being hoisted at childcare centres which no one else had the 'courage' to do. He denied being a 'bully' and 'aggressive', saying he had no arguments with staff and the accusations against him were false. '(The suspension) should send shivers down the spine of every democratically elected councillor in this state to say your jobs are no longer safe,' he said. 'Because what we have witnessed now is that if you ask a question, if you ask where the money is going … they will mobilise bureaucracy against you.' Following the suspension the state government announced a commission of inquiry into Whittlesea council to address 'potentially serious and systemic' governance issues. The four month independent inquiry began on May 19 and will examine matters affecting good governance at the council and any legislative, regulatory or other reform needed to address the issues occurring since the local elections last year. Mr Staikos said he believed a commission of inquiry was needed after receiving a letter co-signed by 10 councillors asking for an urgent intervention. 'The situation at the City of Whittlesea is unprecedented — including the unanimous no-confidence motion in the mayor and his subsequent ban from council premises for occupational health and safety reasons,' he said. 'We want Victorians to have confidence in their local councils. This inquiry will help to identify any changes needed to ensure the council is operating as required and in the best interests of its local community.'

News.com.au
42 minutes ago
- News.com.au
City of Perth suspends e-scooters after a pedestrian was struck down and killed by a allegedly drunk rider
The City of Perth has suspended the hire of e-scooters after a pedestrian was knocked down and killed by an alleged drunk rider on Saturday night. Thanh Phan, 51, died from a brain bleed on Tuesday after he was struck from behind by an e-scooter at the intersection of Murray and King St about 8.40pm last Saturday. British backpacker Alicia Kemp, 24, was taken into custody at the scene. Police allege she was under the influence of alcohol with a 26-year-old passenger, before she hit Mr Phan. Her charges were upgraded to dangerous driving occasioning bodily harm and dangerous driving occasioning death after Mr Phan died. He is the first pedestrian to die in WA from an e-scooter incident. Following the tragic incident, the City of Perth suspended the hire of e-scooters from midday on Thursday. Deputy Lord Mayor Brian Reynolds told the ABC it was 'appropriate' for the council to suspend e-scooter rentals in response to the 'horrible' incident. 'This is a tragedy on all levels … our thoughts are with the family and other extended family and friends,' he said. 'Information is coming to hand in every moment but, in our first instance, our responsibility is to act responsible in a respectful manner.' Mr Reynolds said the City would make a final decision once they had collected all the information they could and looked at the data around the events that led to the tragedy. WA Premier Roger Cook also told ABC Perth it was an appropriate response from the City and while e-scooters were a great way to move around and enjoy communities, there had to be regulations in place. 'We know that e-scooters are a regular feature of major cities right around the world and a way that people move around the cities,' he said. 'We have to make sure that it's safe and I think the council is moving in an absolutely appropriate way.' According to the Australian Medical Association WA president Michael Page, at least one person with major injuries caused from e-scooters presented to the Royal Perth Hospital's trauma unit each day. He told ABC Radio there was enough evidence for councils to act and seriously consider similar e-scooter bans. 'It's serious issue, we've been warning about it for years,' he said. 'There is ample evidence for city councils to act on this and to act on it in a more definitive way.' On Tuesday, Mr Phan's family and friends issued a statement calling for more governance and regulations around hired e-scooters to prevent further serious incidents and lives risked. 'We received the heartbreaking news that Thanh passed away as a result of his injuries,' the statement read. 'On Saturday night, Thanh Phan – a beloved husband, father of two, brother, and dear friend – was struck by an electric scooter and critically injured. 'We also call for a review of the governance and safety regulations surrounding hired e-scooters to help prevent further serious incidents that put lives at risk.'

ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
Australian healthcare workers sign open letters calling on government to sanction Israel
More than 1,000 Australian health professionals have signed two open letters calling on the government to sanction Israel and stop the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. One of the letters was organised by Wollongong pharmacist Yossra Aboulfadl. She has been helping Australian doctors coming back from Gaza to share firsthand testimonies of the devastation they witnessed. At least 94 per cent of all hospitals in the Gaza Strip are damaged or destroyed, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). WHO recorded 697 attacks on health care facilities in Gaza since October 2023. Top United Nations (UN) officials and independent humanitarian organisations have warned Israel is using starvation as a warfare method by blocking critical resources into Gaza. Over four days, Ms Aboulfadl's letter was signed by about 1,050 doctors, nurses, midwives, and pharmacists from across Australia. They have all shared their names, titles, and locations on the public letter. Her letter, addressed to the prime minister, foreign affairs and health ministers, calls on the government to increase funding and logistical support to trusted humanitarian organisations operating in the besieged strip. They also ask the government applies "sustained diplomatic pressure to lift the blockade and allow the unimpeded delivery of essential medical supplies, food, clean water, fuel and shelter". Ms Aboulfadl said the letter garnered such widespread support because many health care workers had been "witnessing this humanitarian crisis every single day, it comes naturally for health professionals to speak up". "I would like to see Australia standing up for the right thing. I would like to see sanctions to Israel. We want to be the country that says no to such violence, to such injustice," she said. She described how many were heartbroken and traumatised by the scale of death and destruction, both to civilians, and in particular, to medical health professionals. In April, the Israel Defense Forces admitted to killing 15 emergency workers in Gaza. Their bodies were found in a mass grave near the wreckage of their mangled ambulances and fire trucks. The dead included eight medics, six civil defence workers and a UN employee. "We've been watching and witnessing this genocide for over a year and a half," Ms Aboulfadl said. Israel rejected the genocide allegations levelled against it, brought to International Court of Justice by South Africa. The Israeli government said 1,200 Israelis were killed in the Hamas attack in October 2023. According to the Palestinian health ministry in Gaza, Israel has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians since that date. The letter followed an event organised by Ms Aboulfadl late last month in Wollongong. It featured health professionals who came back from medical aid missions in Gaza recently, including executive director of Illawarra Women's Health, Sally Stevenson. Ms Stevenson served with Médecins Sans Frontières in Gaza last year. Last month Prime Minister Anthony Albanese commented on Israel's three-month-long aid blockade on Gaza describing it as "completely unacceptable". "People are starving; the idea that a democratic state withholds supply is an outrage," he said. Commenting on the Australian government's response so far, Ms Stevenson said "words have become obsolete". "We've seen the deliberate destruction of the health system, the bombing of hospitals, the use of starvation and gender-based violence as weapons of war, we've seen babies burned and children mutilated," she said. A spokesperson for Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Australia had committed $100 million in humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza and Lebanon since October 2023. "Like the UK, Canada and other partners, Australia has condemned and sanctioned Israeli extremists for their violence against Palestinians," they said. "Along with partners, Australia has been pressing Israel to immediately allow the rapid and unimpeded flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza. "We continue to call on all parties to return to the ceasefire and hostage deal." Ms Stevenson said removing the blockade, allowing unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza, and an immediate ceasefire are the minimum expectations of the Australian government to demand of Israel. She said the government needed "to step up as signatories to the treaties that protect life when there is conflict". A second letter organised by the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand Doctors for Palestine has been signed by 900 Australians doctors. The letter also emphasised the urgency of government action to stop the "systematic dismantling of Gaza's health care system" and called for "immediate and targeted sanctions on Israel".