The trial of ‘Mushroom Lady’ Erin Patterson is continuing this week, with more forensic testimony from a range of experts, from toxicologists to mycologists and communications technology experts. What it all adds up to is a growing body of circumstantial evidence. Whether it all adds up to a smoking gun is for the jury to decide.
Ms Patterson has been accused of using poisonous death cap mushrooms served in a beef Wellington to kill three of her estranged husband’s elderly relatives at a lunch at her home in 2023.
She had also been charged with the attempted murder of a fourth relative, who ate the meal but survived after a lengthy stay in hospital.
Ms Patterson has pleaded not guilty and denied wrongdoing.
So, what did the court hear as the third week of hearings kicked off?
Forensic toxicologist Dimitri Gerostamoulos, who analysed the meal one month after Ms Patterson hosted her lunch, found death cap mushroom toxins in the mushroom paste and meat.
Plant Health Australia scientist David Lovelock did not find death cap mushrooms in the food, but detected toxins in debris taken from a Sunbeam dehydrator she disposed of in the aftermath of the lunch.
Gerostamoulos said the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine received the lunch leftovers on August 29, 2023, exactly a month after the fatal lunch. He separated them into four trays and tested them. The mushroom paste and beef samples tested positive for death cap mushroom toxins.
Gerostamoulos was also asked what would happen if two adults with no pre-existing health issues ate the same amount of a meal that contained death cap mushrooms. “It would be likely that there would be some adverse outcomes for the person who survived. We have had examples where two people have consumed the same meal,” he said. “This happened last year in Victoria, one person passed away and another was ill for some time. It will depend on how much is eaten and the person’s response to the amount of toxins.”
The court also heard from ‘citizen scientists’ who posted photos and locations of death cap mushrooms in the area on websites, and communications experts who listed evidence obtained from Erin Patterson’s phone, relating to her movements at key times.
The court has been shown images of [retired pharmacist Christine McKenzie]’s post – made under the profile ‘chrismck’ – which were geotagged in accordance with the location data extracted from the photo on her phone.
The jury was told during the prosecution’s opening address that mobile data suggests 10 days after the mushrooms were spotted by Ms McKenzie, Ms Patterson travelled to and remained in the Loch area before returning home.
Ms McKenzie told the court on Friday it was possible to zoom in on the location of iNaturalist posts “almost to the point”.
Phone tower expert Dr Matthew Sorell said records showed that Patterson’s phone possibly travelled to and spent time in the are on April 28, 2023, and on May 22, 2023. This was two months before the lunch. Loch is just 10 minutes drive from Patterson’s home in Korumburra, about halfway to Western Port Bay. Just over two hours after the April 28 trip, Patterson allegedly purchased a Sunbeam food lab electronic dehydrator from a Leongatha store, a 10 minute drive in the opposite direction from her Korumburra home.
It was not the only time, though, that Patterson’s phone data placed her at the location of publicly posted death cap mushroom locations. A month after the first foray, Melbourne fungi expert Tom May posted more photos and location data for death cap mushrooms to the iNaturalist website. The very next day, according to Dr Sorrell, records showed Patterson’s phone pinged against phone towers in Leongatha before connecting to a tower in the Outtrim area.
