Latest news with #healthinvestigation
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Yahoo
Protester accosts judge as Erin Patterson trial hears how officials tried to find source of deadly mushrooms
Erin Patterson spent days after the beef wellington lunch speaking with a department of health official in detail about sourcing the mushrooms for the meal from an Asian grocer and Woolworths, a Victorian court has heard. Day 19 of Patterson's trial at the Latrobe Valley Law Courts in Morwell was also interrupted by a protester, who shouted accusations at Justice Christopher Beale before being escorted out of the room by police. Patterson, 50, faces three charges of murder and one charge of attempted murder relating to a beef wellington lunch she served at her house in Leongatha in South Gippsland on 29 July 2023. Patterson has pleaded not guilty to murdering or attempting to murder the relatives of her estranged husband, Simon Patterson. She is accused of murdering Simon's parents, Don and Gail Patterson, his aunt Heather Wilkinson, and attempting to murder Ian Wilkinson, Simon's uncle and Heather's husband. The court was interrupted early on Monday, as a man wearing a yellow T-shirt featuring the message 'All we are saying is give truth a chance' shouted accusations that murder cases had been 'rigged' . Beale did not comment as the man was quickly walked from the court by a police officer. Later, the court heard from Sallyann Atkinson, a department of health official who was tasked with investigating the circumstances of the lunch after the Pattersons and Wilkinsons were taken to hospital on 30 July 2023. A report was made to the department in order for them to investigate whether a broader public health response was required. Atkinson said she exchanged multiple phone calls and text messages with Patterson between 1 August and 4 August in an attempt to establish the source of the mushrooms used in the meal. The court has previously heard Patterson told multiple people, including family members and health professionals, that she used fresh mushrooms from a local Woolworths supermarket and dried mushrooms from an Asian grocer in Melbourne. Atkinson said that in one of her first conversations with Patterson she said the beef wellington was something she had never made before, but she'd cooked it as 'she wanted to do something fancy'. Atkinson told the court she then struggled to get hold of Patterson again, with the accused responding via text that she was 'a bit snowed under trying to manage' the fact her children were in hospital after eating leftovers of the lunch. She spoke to Patterson on 2 August, Atkinson said, when child support worker Katrina Cripps visited her at home. Atkinson texted her earlier that day with seven specific questions about the lunch, including what had been served to drink, what type of shallots were used in the dish, and what type of packaging the dried mushrooms were sold in. Later that afternoon, Atkinson sent photos of different sizes of ziplock bags to Patterson, marked with a white sticker and with a pen used to indicate their size, in a bid to help her identify the size of bag the dried mushrooms had been sold in. She also asked Patterson whether the mushrooms had been whole or sliced. (July 29, 2023) Erin Patterson hosts lunch for estranged husband Simon's parents, Don and Gail Patterson, and his aunt and uncle Heather and Ian Wilkinson. Patterson serves beef wellington. (July 30, 2023) All four lunch guests are admitted to hospital with gastro-like symptoms. (August 4, 2023) Gail Patterson and Heather Wilkinson die in hospital. (August 5, 2023) Don Patterson dies in hospital. Victoria police search Erin Patterson's home and interview her. (September 23, 2023) Ian Wilkinson is discharged from hospital after weeks in intensive care. (November 2, 2023) Police again search Erin Patterson's home, and she is arrested and interviewed. She is charged with three counts of murder relating to the deaths of Don and Gail Patterson and Heather Wilkinson, and the attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson. (April 28, 2025) Jury is sworn in. (April 29, 2025) Murder trial begins. Jury hears that charges of attempting to murder her estranged husband Simon are dropped. In its opening to the case, the prosecution said Patterson lied about getting death cap mushrooms from an Asian grocer, evidence which it said it intended to use to demonstrate incriminating conduct. Colin Mandy SC, for Patterson, said the prosecution relied on evidence of this kind to demonstrate that Patterson behaved in a way after the lunch 'that might make her look guilty'. 'The prosecution says she behaved in that way because she knew she was guilty of murder and the defence case is that she panicked because she was overwhelmed by the fact that these four people had become so ill because of the food that she'd served to them,' Mandy said. 'Three people died because of the food that Erin Patterson served that day. So you'll need to think about this issue: how Erin Patterson felt about that in the days that follow. That is an issue in this trial. You will need to consider how she behaved and what she did in that important context. 'How did she feel in those days after the lunch, about serving up a meal that had such tragic consequences? And how might that have impacted on the way she behaved?' Related: A life saved and what Erin Patterson allegedly confided to friends: week four of the mushroom lunch trial He went on to reference the intense scrutiny on Patterson immediately after the lunch. Mandy did not directly address whether Patterson had lied about the mushrooms, as she had been accused by the prosecution, but did say she lied to police about having never foraged for mushrooms, though clarified she had never sought out death cap mushrooms. 'It is not an issue that very early on there was intense public health scrutiny, police scrutiny, media scrutiny,' Mandy said in his opening address. 'So when you're considering that evidence, the evidence of her behaviour after the lunch, you'll need to think about these questions. Might someone panic in a situation like that? Is it possible that people might do and say things that are not well thought out and might, in the end, make them look bad? 'Is it possible that a person might lie when they find out that people are seriously ill because of the food that they've served up?' Atkinson will resume giving evidence on Tuesday. The trial continues.
The Guardian
26-05-2025
- The Guardian
Protester accosts judge as Erin Patterson trial hears how officials tried to find source of deadly mushrooms
Erin Patterson spent days after the beef wellington lunch speaking with a department of health official in detail about sourcing the mushrooms for the meal from an Asian grocer and Woolworths, a Victorian court has heard. Day 19 of Patterson's trial at the Latrobe Valley Law Courts in Morwell was also interrupted by a protester, who shouted accusations at Justice Christopher Beale before being escorted out of the room by police. Patterson, 50, faces three charges of murder and one charge of attempted murder relating to a beef wellington lunch she served at her house in Leongatha in South Gippsland on 29 July 2023. Patterson has pleaded not guilty to murdering or attempting to murder the relatives of her estranged husband, Simon Patterson. She is accused of murdering Simon's parents, Don and Gail Patterson, his aunt Heather Wilkinson, and attempting to murder Ian Wilkinson, Simon's uncle and Heather's husband. The court was interrupted early on Monday, as a man wearing a yellow T-shirt featuring the message 'All we are saying is give truth a chance' shouted accusations that murder cases had been 'rigged' . Beale did not comment as the man was quickly walked from the court by a police officer. Later, the court heard from Sallyann Atkinson, a department of health official who was tasked with investigating the circumstances of the lunch after the Pattersons and Wilkinsons were taken to hospital on 30 July 2023. A report was made to the department in order for them to investigate whether a broader public health response was required. Atkinson said she exchanged multiple phone calls and text messages with Patterson between 1 August and 4 August in an attempt to establish the source of the mushrooms used in the meal. The court has previously heard Patterson told multiple people, including family members and health professionals, that she used fresh mushrooms from a local Woolworths supermarket and dried mushrooms from an Asian grocer in Melbourne. Atkinson said that in one of her first conversations with Patterson she said the beef wellington was something she had never made before, but she'd cooked it as 'she wanted to do something fancy'. Atkinson told the court she then struggled to get hold of Patterson again, with the accused responding via text that she was 'a bit snowed under trying to manage' the fact her children were in hospital after eating leftovers of the lunch. She spoke to Patterson on 2 August, Atkinson said, when child support worker Katrina Cripps visited her at home. Atkinson texted her earlier that day with seven specific questions about the lunch, including what had been served to drink, what type of shallots were used in the dish, and what type of packaging the dried mushrooms were sold in. Later that afternoon, Atkinson sent photos of different sizes of ziplock bags to Patterson, marked with a white sticker and with a pen used to indicate their size, in a bid to help her identify the size of bag the dried mushrooms had been sold in. She also asked Patterson whether the mushrooms had been whole or sliced. Erin Patterson hosts lunch for estranged husband Simon's parents, Don and Gail Patterson, and his aunt and uncle Heather and Ian Wilkinson. Patterson serves beef wellington. All four lunch guests are admitted to hospital with gastro-like symptoms. Gail Patterson and Heather Wilkinson die in hospital. Don Patterson dies in hospital. Victoria police search Erin Patterson's home and interview her. Ian Wilkinson is discharged from hospital after weeks in intensive care. Police again search Erin Patterson's home, and she is arrested and interviewed. She is charged with three counts of murder relating to the deaths of Don and Gail Patterson and Heather Wilkinson, and the attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson. Jury is sworn in. Murder trial begins. Jury hears that charges of attempting to murder her estranged husband Simon are dropped. In its opening to the case, the prosecution said Patterson lied about getting death cap mushrooms from an Asian grocer, evidence which it said it intended to use to demonstrate incriminating conduct. Colin Mandy SC, for Patterson, said the prosecution relied on evidence of this kind to demonstrate that Patterson behaved in a way after the lunch 'that might make her look guilty'. 'The prosecution says she behaved in that way because she knew she was guilty of murder and the defence case is that she panicked because she was overwhelmed by the fact that these four people had become so ill because of the food that she'd served to them,' Mandy said. 'Three people died because of the food that Erin Patterson served that day. So you'll need to think about this issue: how Erin Patterson felt about that in the days that follow. That is an issue in this trial. You will need to consider how she behaved and what she did in that important context. 'How did she feel in those days after the lunch, about serving up a meal that had such tragic consequences? And how might that have impacted on the way she behaved?' He went on to reference the intense scrutiny on Patterson immediately after the lunch. Mandy did not directly address whether Patterson had lied about the mushrooms, as she had been accused by the prosecution, but did say she lied to police about having never foraged for mushrooms, though clarified she had never sought out death cap mushrooms. 'It is not an issue that very early on there was intense public health scrutiny, police scrutiny, media scrutiny,' Mandy said in his opening address. 'So when you're considering that evidence, the evidence of her behaviour after the lunch, you'll need to think about these questions. Might someone panic in a situation like that? Is it possible that people might do and say things that are not well thought out and might, in the end, make them look bad? 'Is it possible that a person might lie when they find out that people are seriously ill because of the food that they've served up?' Atkinson will resume giving evidence on Tuesday. The trial continues.
ABC News
26-05-2025
- ABC News
Details in accused killer Erin Patterson's account of deadly lunch to authorities changed, court hears
Erin Patterson kept giving "different" information to the health official leading an urgent investigation into the death cap mushroom poisoning that killed three of her in-laws, a murder trial jury has heard. Ms Patterson, 50, has pleaded not guilty to three charges of murder and one of attempted murder over a beef Wellington meal containing death cap mushrooms she served to four relatives in 2023. On Monday afternoon, the Department of Health's Sally Ann Atkinson told the Supreme Court trial how her public health team urgently investigated the death cap poisonings in the wake of the Leongatha lunch. Ms Atkinson, who headed up a team that specifically investigated gastro-related outbreaks, told the court she "immediately" escalated the response when a doctor notified her unit of suspected amatoxin poisoning in at least five people on July 31. The trial of Erin Patterson, who stands accused of using a poisoned meal to murder three relatives, continues. Follow the latest developments in our live blog. "Because this was something that was quite unusual ... [it] sounded very serious," she said. Ms Atkinson said the health department quickly established a team of people to respond to the issue, including food safety officers tasked with pulling any mushrooms from supermarket shelves that posed a risk to the community. The health official said on August 1 she called Erin Patterson on her mobile and asked her about her symptoms. She said Ms Patterson told her that she had experienced "explosive diarrhoea" the night after the Saturday lunch and into the Sunday of the next day. Ms Atkinson said Ms Patterson told her everyone at the lunch had eaten the same food, which was separately plated up and included a packet gravy in addition to the beef Wellingtons, mashed potatoes and beans. She said Ms Patterson told her it was "a meal she'd never made before and she wanted to do something fancy". She said Ms Patterson had told her the mushrooms in the dish were a mixture of Woolworths button mushrooms and dried mushrooms from an Asian grocer in the Oakleigh, Clayton, or Mount Waverley areas. But she said Ms Patterson later told her that store could have been the Glen Waverley area, not Mount Waverley, and rather than buying most of the fresh ingredients on the Friday before the lunch, she had in fact bought the fresh ingredients over Wednesday to Friday. Ms Atkinson said Ms Patterson's account of what she did after buying the dried mushrooms from an Asian grocer months before the lunch also became "different" over time. Initially, Ms Atkinson told the court Ms Patterson informed her that she had bought the dried mushrooms "for a specific meal she was making, which I think was a pasta dish or something". She said Ms Patterson told her she had opened the clear bag the mushrooms were in and "thought they smelt funny". Ms Atkinson said she understood from her first conversation with Ms Patterson that some of the dried mushrooms were used in a pasta dish, and the rest set aside in a Tupperware container. But she said later, Ms Patterson told her she had never cooked a meal with the dried mushrooms before the beef Wellington lunch. "The initial conversation seemed to indicate she'd used some of them in the first dish and … now she was saying that she had not. But she wasn't very clear," Ms Atkinson said. Earlier in the day, the hearing was briefly interrupted by a protester, who began shouting and questioning the authority of Justice Christopher Beale before he was swiftly removed from the courtroom. Ms Patterson's lawyers cross-examined Victoria Police digital forensics witness Shamen Fox-Henry, who was asked about his role in analysing data from devices seized as part of the investigation. The court heard Mr Fox-Henry used a digital tool to preserve hard-drive data from a computer, before analysis of its contents. The court previously heard the computer involved was found in Ms Patterson's house and had been used to visit the iNaturalist and Korumburra Middle Pub websites in 2022. The trial has previously heard sightings of death cap mushrooms were uploaded to the iNaturalist website in areas a short drive from Erin Patterson's home in Leongatha, in the months before she hosted the deadly lunch the next year. The trial last week also heard that phone data suggested Ms Patterson had visited Loch and Outtrim shortly after death cap mushroom sightings were made to iNaturalist, although her defence lawyer told the court any conclusion about her movements based on phone data was just "speculation". Defence barrister Colin Mandy SC questioned Mr Fox-Henry on the rigour he had applied to the process and what double-checks had been done to ensure details of the digital data police had analysed was accurate. Mr Fox-Henry told the court the software used, Magnet Axiom, would have identified if there was an error or issue in the data. "The forensic imaging software that we use dictates whether or not there has been a failure," he said. On Monday the trial also heard from forensic pathologist Brian Beer, who said autopsies of Gail Patterson, Don Patterson and Heather Wilkinson in the days after their deaths revealed extensive liver damage and organ failure consistent with death cap poisoning.
BBC News
16-05-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Caister Health Centre where staff fell ill remains closed
Caister Health Centre in Norfolk is to stay shut all next week, as health bosses try to find out why staff began to feel GP surgery and dental practice have been closed since 6 May when the site was evacuated as a precaution. The month before, 16 people were assessed by medics complaining of headaches and at the on-site pharmacy have been operating a restricted service, dispensing prescriptions at the door with the shop not accessible to the Knights, executive manager of East Norfolk Medical Practice that runs the GP service, said: "We will definitely remain closed at Caister next week." The practice has not given any details about its investigation, nor stated whether it has found any link to staff feeling 29 April, more than a dozen people complained about feeling ill, with four of those seeking attention at James Paget University Hospital.A week later on 6 May, the site was evacuated as a precaution with emergency services called again, as well as engineers from gas network operator Cadent and Anglian Water, which manages the sewer network. Neither found any G Plummer and Associates said it had deployed staff from Caister to its new dental practice in Bradwell, but said some Caister patients had asked for their appointments to be delayed until the site reopens. East Norfolk Medical Practice said it had deferred its patients to Newtown Surgery in Great Yarmouth, with other practices in the group also assisting in maintaining a statement, it said: "We will remain closed until further notice whilst the investigation continues."The investigation is ongoing and no conclusion [has been] reached." Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
