
'Shakespearean' mushroom murders spark mass obsession
And there is little sign of it slowing down.
A media frenzy surrounded the near 11-week trial, including a week of jury deliberations before Erin Patterson was found guilty on three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.
Her estranged husband Simon's parents, Don and Gail Patterson, 70, and aunt Heather Wilkinson, 66, all died after Patterson served them beef Wellington laced with death cap mushrooms in July 2023.
Heather's husband Ian Wilkinson was the sole survivor.
The 50-year-old mother of two's defence team had unsuccessfully argued her lack of motive was a reason the jury should find her not guilty.
"I don't know what her motive is, I think the only person (who) does is her and she's maintaining her innocence, so we may never know what drove this," criminal psychologist Tim Watson-Munro told AAP.
Patterson faces the possibility of life behind bars and her legal team will have 28 days to file an appeal after she is sentenced later in 2025.
Mr Watson-Munro pointed to Patterson's age, gender, lack of prior convictions, seemingly quiet country life and the fact one person survived the lunch as key areas of intrigue for people fascinated with true crime.
"All of that, without being flippant, is a bit Shakespearean," he said.
It became the biggest true crime story in Australia and interest in the case was driven by a boom in podcasts covering the trial, RMIT University journalism professor Alex Wake said.
"It has every single element of intrigue and drama that people love," she said.
"It's got betrayal, it's got murder, it's got family dynamics."
Traditional news outlets have invested heavily in podcasts because they bring in new audiences, Professor Wake said.
"The people who are most avoidant of news tend to be young women, and young women seem to really like podcasts," she said.
Renowned author Helen Garner was spotted at court while several television series are in development, including a documentary from streamer Stan and ABC drama Toxic, told from Patterson's perspective.
Other offerings include a Nine documentary, Murder By Mushroom and Seven's "deep dive" Spotlight special, with both ready for release days after the verdict.
The trial was a "pop culture moment" driven by the absence of an obvious motive and by the method of killing, University of Melbourne associate professor Lauren Rosewarne said.
"There was a genuine mystery at the heart of this story," she said.
"She did it using the method that women (use to) kill people in crime novels: poison."
Much attention was paid to Patterson's appearance and lack of emotion in court, with Dr Rosewarne drawing parallels to Lindy Chamberlain who was eventually exonerated over the death of her daughter Azaria.
It came at a time of booming interest in Australian true crime stories exported overseas, including Netflix documentary series Last Stop Larrimah and ABC drama Bay of Fires.
"Crime narratives, filmed in isolated locales with quirky characters, that's something that Australia kind of does pretty well," Dr Rosewarne said.
"It's saying something about how Australians are perceived overseas, that small town quirky, weird character thing."
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ABC News
7 hours ago
- ABC News
Erin Patterson mushroom deaths trial raises family pain of four poisoned children
The high-profile trial of mushroom poisoning killer Erin Patterson has brought up 160-year-old scars of four tragic deaths in SA's south east. In May 1861, at Hynam — east of Naracoorte — Sophia, Charles, Emma and Susan Norris, aged between seven and one, died from poisoning after eating foraged wild mushrooms. They were believed to have eaten Galerina marginata or funeral bell, which were commonly mistaken for edible honey mushrooms. Noel Norris, whose grandfather was a sibling of the Norris children, said the tragedy stayed with the family for decades. "It wasn't discussed very much for many years, because it was still pretty raw and tender, even after 100 years," he said. "My grandfather would never speak of it. "I did know about it but I didn't take it too seriously. "It was almost told to me like a bit of a children's story." Mr Norris and his wife searched for where the children were buried, eventually finding them in the Hynam cemetery in 2017. The grave was marked out with a fence and a plaque telling the children's story. "It must've been absolutely horrific and I think it left a scar on the Norris family, until now where we've been able to find the graves," he said. Mr Norris said the recently completed trial of Erin Patterson in Victoria brought up some of the emotions. "It brings it back to mind, but our story has been basically put to rest," he said. "We've gone through all the agonies of putting the children to rest, so whilst it does it bring it back, it's at arms length." In South Australia, 932 mushroom-related calls were made to the Poison Information Centre in the decade from 2015 until 2024, most of which were children aged less than five. Of those, 319 cases were referred to hospital. Mr Norris said his great aunts and uncle's stories should serve as a reminder for people of how dangerous mushrooms could be. "Even back from those years of when my family members died, there was still no real realisation of how deadly they can be," he said. "It's only this trial that's brought it back to people's mind to be a bit more aware. "It's a cautionary tale what happened to those beautiful children, but it hasn't stood up and people forget." Hynam Heritage Group secretary Lyn Schinckel said it had long been rumoured the children were buried at Hynam. "Nobody seemed to know where," she said. "There were stories that they weren't allowed to be buried here because it was a private cemetery. "One of the members decided to get the ground-penetrating radar here to actually find if and where they were." Mrs Schinckel was among the attendees at the ceremony in 2017. "We were pretty excited that we'd found something useful that no one else really knew," she said. "It was a very moving little ceremony, particularly for Noel and his wife. "We always knew what had happened but not really how it had finished or where it had finished."


The Advertiser
7 hours ago
- The Advertiser
'It's rife': third of young workers report wage theft
Cafe worker Mia McDowall was initially shocked to discover she'd been underpaid by thousands of dollars but soon learnt it's an experience all too common in the hospitality industry. The 22-year-old has worked for multiple employers who either didn't pay her correctly, forced her to work through legally mandated breaks or didn't pass on deducted superannuation to her fund. "Wage theft is absolutely rife, for sure," Ms McDowall told AAP. "I know more people my age who have spent any significant amount of time in hospitality that have had wages lost than haven't." Ms McDowall is among more than one in three young workers who report being ripped off, according to University of Melbourne research released on Tuesday. Two-thirds were forced to pay for work-related items such as uniforms or protective equipment, almost one-third were not paid compulsory super and more than one-third were banned from taking entitled breaks. One in five said they had been paid off the books, almost 10 per cent were paid in food or products and eight per cent said they never received a pay slip. "The extent of all the different ways that people are being denied their entitlements or employers are breaking the law shocked me," study lead John Howe said. "The majority of employers are doing the right thing, but there's obviously a significant proportion of employers cutting corners with their young workers wherever they can." About one-third reported being paid as little as $15 a hour, well below the national minimum wage of $24.95 per hour, but Professor Howe worries the true scale of underpayments could be greater. "It could be a lot higher, because a lot of workers weren't sure if they were being underpaid," he said. "Vulnerable workers are worried about raising complaints or asking questions about their entitlements because they don't want to jeopardise their job." Researchers expected to find exploitation among hospitality workers but also identified workers being ripped off in utilities industries such as gas and water, agriculture, forestry and even unionised workforces, including mining. Some 2814 workers younger than 30 took part in the survey conducted by the Melbourne Law School as part of its Fair Day's Work project. Only one in three reported seeking help from a union or body such as the Fair Work Ombudsman, with Prof Howe recalling many expressed helplessness over their situation. Now a women's organiser for Trades Hall, Ms McDowall believes her experiences fighting for her minimum entitlements were vital in gaining the skills she needs in her new career. She encouraged anyone to stick up for themselves, pointing to the Fair Work Wage Calculator and Young Workers Centre as great places to start. "It's so important that we are teaching young people how to determine what their pay should be and how to teach people how to have those conversations," she said. Cafe worker Mia McDowall was initially shocked to discover she'd been underpaid by thousands of dollars but soon learnt it's an experience all too common in the hospitality industry. The 22-year-old has worked for multiple employers who either didn't pay her correctly, forced her to work through legally mandated breaks or didn't pass on deducted superannuation to her fund. "Wage theft is absolutely rife, for sure," Ms McDowall told AAP. "I know more people my age who have spent any significant amount of time in hospitality that have had wages lost than haven't." Ms McDowall is among more than one in three young workers who report being ripped off, according to University of Melbourne research released on Tuesday. Two-thirds were forced to pay for work-related items such as uniforms or protective equipment, almost one-third were not paid compulsory super and more than one-third were banned from taking entitled breaks. One in five said they had been paid off the books, almost 10 per cent were paid in food or products and eight per cent said they never received a pay slip. "The extent of all the different ways that people are being denied their entitlements or employers are breaking the law shocked me," study lead John Howe said. "The majority of employers are doing the right thing, but there's obviously a significant proportion of employers cutting corners with their young workers wherever they can." About one-third reported being paid as little as $15 a hour, well below the national minimum wage of $24.95 per hour, but Professor Howe worries the true scale of underpayments could be greater. "It could be a lot higher, because a lot of workers weren't sure if they were being underpaid," he said. "Vulnerable workers are worried about raising complaints or asking questions about their entitlements because they don't want to jeopardise their job." Researchers expected to find exploitation among hospitality workers but also identified workers being ripped off in utilities industries such as gas and water, agriculture, forestry and even unionised workforces, including mining. Some 2814 workers younger than 30 took part in the survey conducted by the Melbourne Law School as part of its Fair Day's Work project. Only one in three reported seeking help from a union or body such as the Fair Work Ombudsman, with Prof Howe recalling many expressed helplessness over their situation. Now a women's organiser for Trades Hall, Ms McDowall believes her experiences fighting for her minimum entitlements were vital in gaining the skills she needs in her new career. She encouraged anyone to stick up for themselves, pointing to the Fair Work Wage Calculator and Young Workers Centre as great places to start. "It's so important that we are teaching young people how to determine what their pay should be and how to teach people how to have those conversations," she said. Cafe worker Mia McDowall was initially shocked to discover she'd been underpaid by thousands of dollars but soon learnt it's an experience all too common in the hospitality industry. The 22-year-old has worked for multiple employers who either didn't pay her correctly, forced her to work through legally mandated breaks or didn't pass on deducted superannuation to her fund. "Wage theft is absolutely rife, for sure," Ms McDowall told AAP. "I know more people my age who have spent any significant amount of time in hospitality that have had wages lost than haven't." Ms McDowall is among more than one in three young workers who report being ripped off, according to University of Melbourne research released on Tuesday. Two-thirds were forced to pay for work-related items such as uniforms or protective equipment, almost one-third were not paid compulsory super and more than one-third were banned from taking entitled breaks. One in five said they had been paid off the books, almost 10 per cent were paid in food or products and eight per cent said they never received a pay slip. "The extent of all the different ways that people are being denied their entitlements or employers are breaking the law shocked me," study lead John Howe said. "The majority of employers are doing the right thing, but there's obviously a significant proportion of employers cutting corners with their young workers wherever they can." About one-third reported being paid as little as $15 a hour, well below the national minimum wage of $24.95 per hour, but Professor Howe worries the true scale of underpayments could be greater. "It could be a lot higher, because a lot of workers weren't sure if they were being underpaid," he said. "Vulnerable workers are worried about raising complaints or asking questions about their entitlements because they don't want to jeopardise their job." Researchers expected to find exploitation among hospitality workers but also identified workers being ripped off in utilities industries such as gas and water, agriculture, forestry and even unionised workforces, including mining. Some 2814 workers younger than 30 took part in the survey conducted by the Melbourne Law School as part of its Fair Day's Work project. Only one in three reported seeking help from a union or body such as the Fair Work Ombudsman, with Prof Howe recalling many expressed helplessness over their situation. 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"I know more people my age who have spent any significant amount of time in hospitality that have had wages lost than haven't." Ms McDowall is among more than one in three young workers who report being ripped off, according to University of Melbourne research released on Tuesday. Two-thirds were forced to pay for work-related items such as uniforms or protective equipment, almost one-third were not paid compulsory super and more than one-third were banned from taking entitled breaks. One in five said they had been paid off the books, almost 10 per cent were paid in food or products and eight per cent said they never received a pay slip. "The extent of all the different ways that people are being denied their entitlements or employers are breaking the law shocked me," study lead John Howe said. "The majority of employers are doing the right thing, but there's obviously a significant proportion of employers cutting corners with their young workers wherever they can." About one-third reported being paid as little as $15 a hour, well below the national minimum wage of $24.95 per hour, but Professor Howe worries the true scale of underpayments could be greater. "It could be a lot higher, because a lot of workers weren't sure if they were being underpaid," he said. "Vulnerable workers are worried about raising complaints or asking questions about their entitlements because they don't want to jeopardise their job." Researchers expected to find exploitation among hospitality workers but also identified workers being ripped off in utilities industries such as gas and water, agriculture, forestry and even unionised workforces, including mining. Some 2814 workers younger than 30 took part in the survey conducted by the Melbourne Law School as part of its Fair Day's Work project. Only one in three reported seeking help from a union or body such as the Fair Work Ombudsman, with Prof Howe recalling many expressed helplessness over their situation. Now a women's organiser for Trades Hall, Ms McDowall believes her experiences fighting for her minimum entitlements were vital in gaining the skills she needs in her new career. She encouraged anyone to stick up for themselves, pointing to the Fair Work Wage Calculator and Young Workers Centre as great places to start. "It's so important that we are teaching young people how to determine what their pay should be and how to teach people how to have those conversations," she said.


The Advertiser
7 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Service gap a revolving door for women fleeing violence
Women and children escaping family violence are being "ping-ponged" between services, as support sectors try to manage inadequate resources and critical underfunding. In Victoria, family violence is the biggest driver of homelessness. In 2022/23, more than half of all women, young people and children who visited a specialist homelessness service reported they were experiencing family violence. Yet a report by Council to Homeless Persons and Safe and Equal found about one in five victim-survivors receives two referrals to homelessness or family violence services, but ultimately ends up with no crisis accommodation. Chronic underinvestment in social housing is being blamed for increasingly long waitlists with women, young people and children who have family violence prioritisation waiting 19 months for accommodation. "What homelessness looks like in Victoria today is a woman aged between 25 and 39 with a child under the age of 11 with her," Council to Homeless Persons chief executive Deborah Di Natale told AAP. "Imagine fleeing violence with your children, knocking on two different doors, and still sleeping in your car that night." Ms Di Natale said a staggering 20 per cent of women fleeing violence experienced a "revolving door" of referrals to various services but ultimately were not able to access accommodation. "Often because the crisis and emergency accommodation isn't there, services end up referring people to hotels and motels which aren't set up to respond to family violence," she said. But women were opting to sleep in their cars or return to their violent partners rather than stay in motels and caravan parks. "People with lived experience say staying in motels is often scarier than staying in a violent household ... they worry they are not safe from the person using violence," Ms Di Natale said. "Being crammed in a hotel with kids after fleeing your home without any wraparound supports like counselling is isolating." The report makes 10 key recommendations to the Victorian government to enable immediate and long-term change. These include building 7990 new and additional social homes every year for 10 years and funding services that provide immediate and appropriate responses to people experiencing family violence and homelessness. It also recommends the state government invest in perpetrator interventions and advocate for all social payments to be brought above the Henderson poverty line of $612.18 per week, per single person. "Women and children are disproportionately affected by homelessness brought on by threats to their physical and psychological safety," Ms Di Natale said. "We must improve our systems to protect them." 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) Lifeline 13 11 14 Men's Referral Service 1300 766 491 Women and children escaping family violence are being "ping-ponged" between services, as support sectors try to manage inadequate resources and critical underfunding. In Victoria, family violence is the biggest driver of homelessness. In 2022/23, more than half of all women, young people and children who visited a specialist homelessness service reported they were experiencing family violence. Yet a report by Council to Homeless Persons and Safe and Equal found about one in five victim-survivors receives two referrals to homelessness or family violence services, but ultimately ends up with no crisis accommodation. Chronic underinvestment in social housing is being blamed for increasingly long waitlists with women, young people and children who have family violence prioritisation waiting 19 months for accommodation. "What homelessness looks like in Victoria today is a woman aged between 25 and 39 with a child under the age of 11 with her," Council to Homeless Persons chief executive Deborah Di Natale told AAP. "Imagine fleeing violence with your children, knocking on two different doors, and still sleeping in your car that night." Ms Di Natale said a staggering 20 per cent of women fleeing violence experienced a "revolving door" of referrals to various services but ultimately were not able to access accommodation. "Often because the crisis and emergency accommodation isn't there, services end up referring people to hotels and motels which aren't set up to respond to family violence," she said. But women were opting to sleep in their cars or return to their violent partners rather than stay in motels and caravan parks. "People with lived experience say staying in motels is often scarier than staying in a violent household ... they worry they are not safe from the person using violence," Ms Di Natale said. "Being crammed in a hotel with kids after fleeing your home without any wraparound supports like counselling is isolating." The report makes 10 key recommendations to the Victorian government to enable immediate and long-term change. These include building 7990 new and additional social homes every year for 10 years and funding services that provide immediate and appropriate responses to people experiencing family violence and homelessness. It also recommends the state government invest in perpetrator interventions and advocate for all social payments to be brought above the Henderson poverty line of $612.18 per week, per single person. "Women and children are disproportionately affected by homelessness brought on by threats to their physical and psychological safety," Ms Di Natale said. "We must improve our systems to protect them." 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) Lifeline 13 11 14 Men's Referral Service 1300 766 491 Women and children escaping family violence are being "ping-ponged" between services, as support sectors try to manage inadequate resources and critical underfunding. In Victoria, family violence is the biggest driver of homelessness. In 2022/23, more than half of all women, young people and children who visited a specialist homelessness service reported they were experiencing family violence. Yet a report by Council to Homeless Persons and Safe and Equal found about one in five victim-survivors receives two referrals to homelessness or family violence services, but ultimately ends up with no crisis accommodation. Chronic underinvestment in social housing is being blamed for increasingly long waitlists with women, young people and children who have family violence prioritisation waiting 19 months for accommodation. "What homelessness looks like in Victoria today is a woman aged between 25 and 39 with a child under the age of 11 with her," Council to Homeless Persons chief executive Deborah Di Natale told AAP. "Imagine fleeing violence with your children, knocking on two different doors, and still sleeping in your car that night." Ms Di Natale said a staggering 20 per cent of women fleeing violence experienced a "revolving door" of referrals to various services but ultimately were not able to access accommodation. "Often because the crisis and emergency accommodation isn't there, services end up referring people to hotels and motels which aren't set up to respond to family violence," she said. But women were opting to sleep in their cars or return to their violent partners rather than stay in motels and caravan parks. "People with lived experience say staying in motels is often scarier than staying in a violent household ... they worry they are not safe from the person using violence," Ms Di Natale said. "Being crammed in a hotel with kids after fleeing your home without any wraparound supports like counselling is isolating." The report makes 10 key recommendations to the Victorian government to enable immediate and long-term change. These include building 7990 new and additional social homes every year for 10 years and funding services that provide immediate and appropriate responses to people experiencing family violence and homelessness. It also recommends the state government invest in perpetrator interventions and advocate for all social payments to be brought above the Henderson poverty line of $612.18 per week, per single person. "Women and children are disproportionately affected by homelessness brought on by threats to their physical and psychological safety," Ms Di Natale said. "We must improve our systems to protect them." 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) Lifeline 13 11 14 Men's Referral Service 1300 766 491 Women and children escaping family violence are being "ping-ponged" between services, as support sectors try to manage inadequate resources and critical underfunding. In Victoria, family violence is the biggest driver of homelessness. In 2022/23, more than half of all women, young people and children who visited a specialist homelessness service reported they were experiencing family violence. Yet a report by Council to Homeless Persons and Safe and Equal found about one in five victim-survivors receives two referrals to homelessness or family violence services, but ultimately ends up with no crisis accommodation. Chronic underinvestment in social housing is being blamed for increasingly long waitlists with women, young people and children who have family violence prioritisation waiting 19 months for accommodation. "What homelessness looks like in Victoria today is a woman aged between 25 and 39 with a child under the age of 11 with her," Council to Homeless Persons chief executive Deborah Di Natale told AAP. "Imagine fleeing violence with your children, knocking on two different doors, and still sleeping in your car that night." Ms Di Natale said a staggering 20 per cent of women fleeing violence experienced a "revolving door" of referrals to various services but ultimately were not able to access accommodation. "Often because the crisis and emergency accommodation isn't there, services end up referring people to hotels and motels which aren't set up to respond to family violence," she said. But women were opting to sleep in their cars or return to their violent partners rather than stay in motels and caravan parks. "People with lived experience say staying in motels is often scarier than staying in a violent household ... they worry they are not safe from the person using violence," Ms Di Natale said. "Being crammed in a hotel with kids after fleeing your home without any wraparound supports like counselling is isolating." The report makes 10 key recommendations to the Victorian government to enable immediate and long-term change. These include building 7990 new and additional social homes every year for 10 years and funding services that provide immediate and appropriate responses to people experiencing family violence and homelessness. It also recommends the state government invest in perpetrator interventions and advocate for all social payments to be brought above the Henderson poverty line of $612.18 per week, per single person. "Women and children are disproportionately affected by homelessness brought on by threats to their physical and psychological safety," Ms Di Natale said. "We must improve our systems to protect them." 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) Lifeline 13 11 14 Men's Referral Service 1300 766 491