# Australian "Mushroom Poisoner" has been charged with murder & attempted murder (Convicted July 6, 2025) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 3, 2023, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534 "2023-11-03T15:11:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2025, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/41 "2025-07-08T22:23:53Z")
> [@Cazzle](#): > > The Daily Mail has published details about the four times her ex believes she poisoned him. The article is geoblocked in Australia so I can’t link to it. I couldn’t turn up that article in limited searches, but the Daily Mail has really been on a roll with the case. A fellow prison inmate has accused Patterson of poisoning her with contaminated food, which sounds suspiciously like a bid for attention, but officials did, incredibly, give Patterson a job in the prison kitchen. 🙄 > **[Erin Patterson accused of tampering with prison food](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14881249/Erin-Patterson-accused-tampering-prison-food.html)** > > Mushroom cook Erin Patterson was accused of tampering with prison food while waiting for the trial to begin. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2025, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/42 "2025-07-08T22:38:34Z")
Trying to solve their prison overcrowding problem, are they? ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/43 "2025-07-09T01:09:19Z")
It was curiously said after the guilty verdict was returned, that Erin Patterson would be “spending her first night in prison” when in fact she has already spent (IIRC) nearly two years in prison awaiting trial. Sloppy journalism, or am I missing something? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/44 "2025-07-09T01:10:48Z")
Does Australia have the same jail-prison distinction as the US? Jail is for short sentences and people awaiting trial, while prison is for long sentences for people who have been found guilty. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/45 "2025-07-09T01:14:14Z")
As I understand it, in Victoria, there is a remand-centre for men awaiting trial, but for women, they’re all housed at the [Dame Phyllis Frost Centre](https://www.corrections.vic.gov.au/contact-or-visit-a-prison/prisons-in-victoria/dame-phyllis-frost-centre) regardless of whether they’ve been sentenced or not. ---
**Author:** ![Ferris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ferris/32/11573_2.png) [@Ferris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferris)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/46 "2025-07-09T01:30:51Z")
@Monty While I’m in New Zealand, not Australia, the news networks have already started reporting on evidence not seen by the jurors. It was the lead item on one TV News channel when the verdict was read out. And, unrelated to that point, the apparent lack of motive was not enough to lead to a Not Guilty verdict, as in cases of murder and attempted murder, all that’s required is for a jury to find a “culpable state of mind”. The sheer number of lies told by Patterson appeared to sway the jurors in believing that state of mind existed. ---
**Author:** ![ASL\_v2.0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asl_v2.0/32/3525_2.png) [@ASL\_v2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASL_v2.0)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/47 "2025-07-09T01:55:18Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > The most likely explanation is that she had lost her mind due to some form of insanity or descent into extreme bitterness about her life, and this manifested as a desire for revenge against several people she didn’t like. …maybe she was actually the first to enjoy _the wrong kind of mushroom_? ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/48 "2025-07-09T02:24:35Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > but officials did, incredibly, give Patterson a job in the prison kitchen. This sounds like the punchline of a joke. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/49 "2025-07-09T02:25:17Z")
> [@Ferris](#): > > And, unrelated to that point, the apparent lack of motive was not enough to lead to a Not Guilty verdict, as in cases of murder and attempted murder, all that’s required is for a jury to find a “culpable state of mind”. Motive is rarely an element of any offence. The Crown has to prove that the person did it, and in certain offences, called specific intent, that the person did it for that purpose. Murder is a specific intent offence. The Crown must prove that the person intended to kill. “Why?” helps to make that point, but is not needed. However, I would speculate that the lack of a clear motive contributed to the jury’s deliberations, which took a week. The “why” for a horrible crime is psychologically important for people to process it. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/50 "2025-07-09T02:58:22Z")
> [@Ferris](#): > > the news networks have already started reporting on evidence not seen by the jurors. Anything of note you remember? ---
**Author:** ![Ferris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ferris/32/11573_2.png) [@Ferris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferris)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/51 "2025-07-09T03:27:40Z")
The two I remember were a drunk driving conviction in 2004 which resulted in her being disqualified from driving and having briefly been an air traffic controller - apparently her work colleagues described her as a loner. They seem like the kind of details that don’t pertain directly to the case but could be prejudicial to her, so I can see why the jurors didn’t see them. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/52 "2025-07-09T11:24:48Z")
Wasn’t there also some religious difference? Not sure what, other than speculation, that adds to any possible explanation. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/53 "2025-07-09T15:10:05Z")
> [@Ferris](#): > > having briefly been an air traffic controller Makes you wonder about potluck day in the break room. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/54 "2025-07-09T15:25:08Z")
> [@ASL\_v2.0](#): > > …maybe she was actually the first to enjoy _the wrong kind of mushroom_? Go ask Erin, I think she’ll know. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/55 "2025-07-09T15:26:04Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > officials did, incredibly, give Patterson a job in the prison kitchen Holy shit. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/56 "2025-07-09T16:18:46Z")
> [@Frodo](#): > > One of my childhood heroes! Meanwhile, back on Earth, other childhood heroes make similar discoveries.. > **[The Shooting Star](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shooting_Star)** > > The Shooting Star (French: L'Étoile mystérieuse) is the tenth volume of The Adventures of Tintin, the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. The story was serialised daily in Le Soir, Belgium's leading francophone newspaper, from October 1941 to May 1942 amidst the German occupation of Belgium during World War II. The story tells of young Belgian reporter Tintin, who travels with his dog Snowy and friend Captain Haddock aboard a scientific expedition to the Arctic Ocean on an internationa... ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/57 "2025-07-09T20:12:59Z")
Oh and thanks to the mods for changing the title of the thread to keep it current. ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2025, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/58 "2025-07-10T08:21:54Z")
_The Documents In The Case_ by Dorothy L Sayers uses the device of murder by mushrooms as a plot point (actually more complicated than that). ---
**Author:** ![ASL\_v2.0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asl_v2.0/32/3525_2.png) [@ASL\_v2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASL_v2.0)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2025, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/59 "2025-07-17T05:22:59Z")
It’s bigger than that. The emperor Claudius was supposed to have been killed by a mushroom. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2025, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534/60 "2025-09-07T07:47:28Z")
Tomorrow is sentencing-day for Erin Patterson. I haz popcorn! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/australian-mushroom-poisoner-has-been-charged-with-murder-attempted-murder-convicted-july-6-2025/992534.md?page=4)