- 2 days ago
Watch the full remarks of Supreme Court Justice Christopher Beale as Erin Patterson is sentenced to life imprisonment with a non-parole period of 33 years over the fatal mushroom lunch that gripped Australia.
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00:00Erin Patterson, after a long trial during which you gave evidence that the poisoning of your four lunch guests on the 29th of July was an accident, the jury found you guilty of three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.
00:16In other words, the jury necessarily found that you deliberately served poison meals to Gail and Don Patterson and Heather and Ian Wilkinson and that you did so intending to kill them.
00:30Only Ian Wilkinson survived.
00:33The maximum penalty for murder is life imprisonment and for attempted murder, 25 years imprisonment.
00:41Murder is also a standard sentence offence and the standard sentence offence for murder is 25 years imprisonment.
00:50The prosecution submits and your counsel concedes that your offending falls into the worst category of offending for these offences
00:58and that you should receive the maximum penalties for your crimes.
01:02I agree, for reasons that I will come to in due course.
01:08The prosecution also submits that having regard to the horrendous nature of your crimes, I should not fix a non-parole period.
01:16In other words, the prosecution submits that you should never have the opportunity of being released from prison on parole.
01:25Your counsel challenged this submission, relying principally on the harsher than usual conditions of your imprisonment,
01:33which both sides agree are likely to continue for the foreseeable future.
01:38Whether or not to fix a non-parole period is the main dispute which I have to determine.
01:46These sentencing reasons consist of four parts.
01:51First, the circumstances of the offences.
01:54Second, your circumstances.
01:57Third, relevant sentencing law.
02:00And fourth, the actual sentences.
02:03It is convenient at this stage to mention one aspect of sentencing law.
02:09Where the prosecution alleges circumstances that aggravate your offending,
02:14the prosecution must prove those circumstances beyond reasonable doubt.
02:19Where the defence alleges circumstances of mitigation,
02:24the defence must prove those circumstances on the balance of probabilities.
02:27Just before I turn to the circumstances of your offences,
02:34I note that at your trial, the prosecution conceded that they could not prove motive.
02:41As is standard, I directed the jury that the prosecution did not have to prove motive,
02:46only the elements of the offences, and that, quote,
02:50some murders occur for no apparent reason.
02:53The motives for such murders may only ever be known to the offenders.
02:57Clearly, the jury was satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that you committed the alleged offences.
03:06Only you know why you committed them.
03:08I will not be speculating about that matter.
03:10I will begin my discussion of the circumstances of your offences
03:17with the fact that you were familiar with the iNaturalist website from at least May 2022.
03:25That is a website on which people can post and view sightings of deathcap mushrooms, amongst other things.
03:31On the 28th of May 2022, you accessed the iNaturalist website and navigated to its worldwide map in relation to sightings of deathcap mushrooms.
03:41Using that map, you accessed information concerning the sighting of deathcap mushrooms in Moorabbin, a suburb of Melbourne.
03:50In late 2022, a dispute arose between you and your estranged husband, Simon Patterson, regarding child support payments for your two young children who live with you.
04:02In December 2022, you referred to that dispute in your communications with a Facebook messenger group, with whom you shared an interest in true crime.
04:12You were scathing in your remarks about both Simon and his parents, Don and Gail Patterson.
04:20Amongst other things, you derided your father-in-law's suggestion that you and Simon get together and pray for your children, commenting, quote,
04:29This family, I swear to fucking God.
04:32You called them, quote, a lost cause.
04:36You wondered whether they had, quote, any capacity for self-reflection at all.
04:42You said, quote, fuck them, and that you suspected the best thing you could do was, quote, just to forget about all of them and live your life.
04:53You accused Simon of, quote, gaslighting you, and Don and Gail of using, quote, weasel words.
05:01You called Simon, quote, a deadbeat, and wondered why Gail was not, quote, horrified by his stance regarding child support.
05:10According to your testimony at trial, and to a lesser extent, Simon's testimony, the dispute over child support had resolved by early 23.
05:22On the 18th of April 23, one Christine McKenzie, a former poison specialist, was visiting her daughter in Lough, which is a small town about a 25-minute drive northwest of Leangatha, where you lived.
05:37Miss McKenzie observed deathcap mushrooms in Lough Reserve and posted details of her observations, including photographs, on the iNaturalist's website the same day.
05:50Miss McKenzie disposed of all the deathcap mushrooms that she could find because of the danger she thought they posed, especially to young children.
05:57On the morning of the 28th of April 23, your mobile phone, which was never recovered by investigators, connected to certain cell towers consistent with a possible visit by you to the Lough Reserve.
06:11That afternoon, you purchased a food dehydrator in Leangatha.
06:20Between the 28th of April and the 4th of May 23, you photographed foraged mushrooms on the trays of your dehydrator.
06:29The images were found by investigators on a Samsung tablet later seized from your home.
06:34Dr. Tom May, a world-renowned expert in fungi, gave evidence at your trial that those images were, quote,
06:42consistent with deathcap mushrooms to a high degree of confidence.
06:47On the 21st of May 23, Dr. May observed deathcap mushrooms in Nielsen Street, Outram.
06:55Outram is a small town about a 23-minute drive southwest of Leangatha.
06:59Later that day, Dr. May posted details of his observations, including photographs, on the iNaturalist website.
07:09On the morning of the 22nd of May 23, your phone connected to certain cell towers,
07:15consistent with a possible visit by you to Lough Reserve.
07:19Later that morning, your phone connected to certain cell towers,
07:23consistent with a possible visit by you to Nielsen Street, Outram.
07:29On the 24th of June 23, you hosted a lunch at your Leangatha home,
07:35attended by Don and Gail and your children.
07:38You had invited Simon to that lunch, but he declined, saying in a text message, quote,
07:42Hi, Aaron. Thank you for your kind lunch invite, together with Mum and Dad.
07:47I'm sorry, I'll decline, as I feel too uncomfortable about it.
07:51Between the 28th of June and the 7th of July 23, there were a series of messages between you and Gail
08:01in which you falsely represented that you had undergone a needle biopsy for a lump in your arm
08:07and an MRI.
08:10In response to a message from Gail as to how you got on with your medical tests,
08:15you messaged her on the 7th of July 23 that, quote,
08:19There's a bit to digest with everything that's come out of it all.
08:23I might talk more about it with you both when I see you in person.
08:27On the 16th of July 23, you attended the Sunday service at the Korumburra Baptist Church,
08:35where Ian Wilkinson was and is the pastor.
08:40After the service, you invited Gail and Don Patterson and Heather and Ian Wilkinson
08:44to lunch at your home at Gibson Street Leangatha on the 29th of July 23.
08:50Both the Pattersons and the Wilkinsons were surprised by the invitation.
08:54As the Wilkinsons had never previously been invited to a meal at your home.
09:00You also invited Simon, telling him that you had invited his parents and his aunt and uncle.
09:07You told him you had some important medical news which you wanted to discuss at the lunch
09:12and that you did not want the children to be present.
09:17Simon initially accepted your invitation and informed his parents that the purpose of the lunch
09:22was to discuss your medical issues and how to inform the children.
09:28On the evening of the 28th of July 23, Simon and you exchanged messages.
09:34Simon's read,
09:36quote,
09:36You replied five minutes later,
09:56It's important to me that you're all there tomorrow and that I can have the conversations that I need to have.
10:25I hope you'll change your mind.
10:28Your parents and Heather and Ian are coming at 12.30.
10:31I hope to see you there.
10:35On Saturday the 29th of July 23, you served your four lunch guests, individual beef wellingtons,
10:42which were deliberately poisoned with death cap mushrooms.
10:45You gave evidence at your trial that had Simon attended the lunch, you would also have served him a beef wellington.
10:54I accept the evidence of Ian Wilkinson that you served your guests their meals on four grey plates
11:00while your individual beef wellington was on a smaller, orangey-tan coloured plate,
11:06a fact that Heather also commented on to Ian and Simon the next day.
11:13I find that you did this to ensure that you did not mistakenly consume a poisoned meal.
11:18I also accept the evidence of Ian Wilkinson that at the conclusion of the meal,
11:24you falsely told your guests that you had been diagnosed with cancer
11:28and sought their advice as to whether and how you should break the news to your children
11:33that you had a life-threatening illness.
11:36Not long after this conversation started, your son and his friend, who had gone to a movie, returned home.
11:46The conversation about cancer ceased, but not before all your lunch guests,
11:52at Ian's suggestion, prayed for your health.
11:56Soon after, they left.
11:59Around midnight to 1am on Sunday the 30th of July 23,
12:03all of your lunch guests fell seriously ill, suffering repeated vomiting and diarrhoea.
12:09On Sunday morning, Gail and Don informed Simon of their conditions
12:12and called an ambulance, which took them to nearby Corumburra Hospital.
12:18Simon attended the Wilkinsons' home to find that Heather and Ian were similarly unwell.
12:24He took them first to Corumburra Hospital, but was redirected to Leangatha Hospital
12:29because of limited resources.
12:30By way of contrast, you made a round trip of approximately two hours on Sunday afternoon
12:37to take your son to a flying lesson at Tyab.
12:41By the Sunday evening, Don and Gail had been transferred to Dandenong Hospital.
12:47On the morning of Monday 31 July 23, Ian and Heather were also transferred to Dandenong Hospital.
12:54Later that day, Gail and Don were transferred to the Austin Hospital,
12:59as were Heather and Ian on Tuesday 1 August 23.
13:03All of them were experiencing advanced multiple organ failure.
13:08Having learned from Simon on the Sunday that your parents-in-law had been hospitalised,
13:16you attended Leangatha Hospital on the Monday, complaining of diarrhoea.
13:21You did not stay long.
13:22Shortly after a doctor indicated to you that death cap mushroom poisoning was suspected,
13:27you left, despite warnings by another doctor and nurse that your life was in danger.
13:33When you returned, you showed reluctance to receive treatment for suspected death cap mushroom poisoning
13:44and to organise a medical assessment for your children, who were at school.
13:49Medical staff were urging you to have the children assessed because you claimed, falsely,
13:54that on the Sunday night you fed them the leftovers of the Beef Wellingtons,
13:57with the pastry and mushrooms scraped off.
14:00Eventually, you were arranged with Simon to collect the children and bring them to hospital.
14:05On the Monday morning, police recovered Beef Wellington remains from a bin outside your home,
14:11which were later found to contain death cap mushroom toxins.
14:16On the Monday afternoon, you were transferred to Monash Medical Centre in Clayton.
14:21Simon brought the children there.
14:23You and the children were kept in hospital overnight for observation.
14:26At both Leangatha Hospital and Monash Medical Centre, you were asked by various people,
14:33including doctors and representatives of the Health Department and the Child Protection Service,
14:38where you would source the mushrooms for the Beef Wellingtons.
14:42You said you would purchase some fresh mushrooms at Woolworths
14:45and some dried mushrooms from an Asian grocery.
14:49You were vague about the location of the Asian grocery,
14:52claiming you had purchased the dried mushrooms several months before
14:55and that the shop could have been in one of a number of suburbs that fall within the boundaries of the City of Monash.
15:02You denied having foraged for mushrooms,
15:04a lie repeated in your recorded police interview on 5 August 23.
15:09At your trial, you maintained the story about having sourced some of the mushrooms from an Asian grocery,
15:18but testified that in May and June of 23,
15:21you had foraged for edible mushrooms in various places, including the Korumbarra Botanical Gardens.
15:28You testified that you had dehydrated these mushrooms and put them in a container
15:32which contained the dried mushrooms from the Asian grocery and that you used the dried mushrooms in that container,
15:40along with the fresh mushrooms from Woolworths, in the Beef Wellingtons.
15:45You testified that in this way,
15:48death cap mushrooms must have accidentally found their way into the meals served to your lunch guests.
15:54The jury rejected this elaborate explanation.
15:59They found that you deliberately poisoned the meals of your lunch guests.
16:03I am satisfied that your vague story about the Asian grocery was a lie.
16:09When you realised that the lie would not work,
16:12because death cap mushrooms cannot be cultivated commercially,
16:16and there were no other reports of people falling ill from mushrooms purchased at Asian groceries,
16:22you changed tack.
16:24You concocted the story you told the jury about foraged mushrooms ending up in the container
16:29with the Asian grocery mushrooms and then accidentally ending up in the Beef Wellingtons.
16:36On the afternoon of Tuesday 1 August 23,
16:40you and the children were discharged from Monash Hospital.
16:43On the morning of the 2nd of August 23,
16:47you disposed of your dehydrator at a local tip, the Coonwara Transfer Station.
16:53On the 4th of August 23, investigators recovered your dehydrator from the tip.
17:00Forensic examination revealed that the dehydrator contained traces of death cap mushrooms.
17:05That same day, 4th of August 23, Heather Wilkinson, aged 66,
17:13and Gail Patterson, aged 70, died from death cap mushroom poisoning.
17:18And Don Patterson, who was desperately ill, was given a liver transplant.
17:22On the 5th of August 23, the police executed a search warrant at your home.
17:29You handed over a dummy phone.
17:31It was not the phone that you had been using throughout most of 23,
17:34the phone which on the 28th of April 23 had connected to certain cell towers,
17:39indicating a possible visit to Locke,
17:41and which on the 22nd of May 23 had connected to certain cell towers,
17:47indicating possible visits to Locke and Outram.
17:49In your recorded interview following the search,
17:55you denied having foraged for mushrooms and denied owning a dehydrator.
18:00Late on the 5th of August 23, Don Patterson, aged 70,
18:05died from death cap mushroom poisoning.
18:09Ian Wilkinson very nearly died, but gradually his condition improved.
18:14On the 21st of August 23, he was discharged from the intensive care unit
18:18to a ward at the Austin Hospital.
18:21On the 11th of September 23, he was moved to the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital.
18:27On the 21st of September 23, he was discharged home.
18:31He has not fully recovered.
18:33He has reduced kidney function, ongoing respiratory issues,
18:37and reduced energy.
18:38On the 2nd of November 23, the police executed another search warrant at your home,
18:46seizing more electrical devices.
18:49You were arrested and charged.
18:51You have been in custody ever since.
18:55Let me now summarise the aggravating circumstances of your offending.
18:59Your offending, which resulted in the death of three people and near death of another,
19:06involved substantial premeditation.
19:09I am satisfied that by the 16th of July 23,
19:13when you unusually invited Simon, his parents and his aunt and uncle to a lunch
19:19without the children to discuss your non-existent medical issues,
19:24you did so with the intention of killing them all.
19:27The dehydrator, which you purchased in late 23, late April 23,
19:34enabled you to preserve death cap mushrooms,
19:36which you put into the individual beef wellingtons served to your guests.
19:42Whether those death cap mushrooms came from Locke on the 28th of April 23,
19:47or from Locke or Outram on the 22nd of May 23,
19:51or from another location in May or June of 23,
19:55as you suggested in your testimony,
19:57is in my view of no great moment.
20:02After learning from Simon on Sunday the 30th of July 23
20:06that some or all of your lunch guests had been hospitalised,
20:10you showed no pity for your victims.
20:13Instead of informing those treating the Pattersons and Wilkinsons
20:17that you had used forage mushrooms,
20:19which you could have done without having to admit
20:22that you had deliberately poisoned their meals.
20:26You repeatedly denied foraging,
20:29insisting that the mushrooms for the beef wellingtons
20:31were sourced solely from Woolworths and an Asian grocery.
20:35We will never know whether revealing the use of foraged mushrooms
20:40would have made a difference.
20:43But the administration of the drug silabinin,
20:46which is a specific antidote for death cap mushroom poisoning,
20:50was not commenced on 30 July 23
20:53because at that stage,
20:54the evidence regarding the type of toxin was inconclusive.
20:57Similarly, the administration of NAC
21:01to preserve the victims' livers from toxins
21:04was not commenced until almost midnight
21:06on 30 July 23 for Don Patterson
21:09and on 31 July 23 for the others.
21:15The prosecution submitted that I should infer
21:17from your pitiless behaviour
21:19that your intention to kill was ongoing
21:21and that this constitutes
21:23an additional aggravating circumstance.
21:26I accept that submission.
21:29As the Wilkinsons' daughter, Ruth Dubois,
21:32remarked in her victim impact statement,
21:35you, quote,
21:36followed through on your lethal plan.
21:41Your lunch guests each suffered
21:44severe gastrointestinal illness
21:46on the Sunday and Monday
21:47prior to being sedated and mechanically ventilated.
21:51Their suffering was protracted.
21:53And Ian Wilkins suffers ongoing health issues.
21:57This aggravates your offending.
22:00The prosecution submitted
22:01that you must have anticipated
22:03that your victims would suffer
22:05in the way they did.
22:07I am satisfied of that beyond reasonable doubt.
22:10It is implausible
22:11that you would have selected death cap mushrooms
22:13without ascertaining
22:15how they would work upon your victims.
22:17Further, the devastating impact of your crimes
22:21is not limited to your direct victims.
22:25Your crimes have harmed a great many people.
22:27I will expand on this aggravating circumstance
22:31when I turn to the victim impact statements.
22:33In addition to denying
22:37the use of foraged mushrooms,
22:40you engaged in an elaborate cover-up of your guilt.
22:43I find that you disposed
22:44of the four grey plates
22:45on which you served the poison beef wellingtons.
22:48You falsely made out
22:49that you had fed your children
22:51leftover beef wellingtons
22:52with the pastry and mushrooms scraped off.
22:55You feigned illness.
22:57You disposed of the dehydrator
22:58soon after you were released from hospital.
23:00You maintained the vague story
23:03about sourcing dried mushrooms
23:04at an Asian grocery
23:05and had the gall to tell police
23:08in your recorded police interview
23:09that you had been very, very helpful
23:12to the health department
23:13in its investigation of the incident.
23:16You disposed of your phone
23:18and provided police with a dummy phone.
23:20You lied to the police
23:21in your recorded police interview
23:23about various matters.
23:26Finally, and most importantly,
23:28your offending involved
23:29an enormous betrayal of trust.
23:32Your victims were all your relatives
23:34by marriage.
23:36More than that,
23:37they had all been good to you
23:38and your children over many years
23:40as you acknowledged in your testimony.
23:43Not only did you cut short three lives
23:45and cause lasting damage
23:47to Ian Wilkinson's health,
23:50thereby devastating the extended
23:51Patterson and Wilkinson families,
23:54you inflicted untold suffering
23:56on your own children
23:57whom you robbed
23:58of their beloved grandparents.
24:03The victim impact statements
24:05reveal the immense
24:07and ongoing anguish
24:09suffered by your many victims,
24:11direct and indirect.
24:13No summary could do justice
24:15to the individual
24:16and collective power
24:17of those statements.
24:19It is not my intention here
24:22to summarise
24:23or refer to every statement,
24:25but rather
24:25to highlight
24:26some key aspects.
24:30Four generations
24:31of the extended
24:32Patterson and Wilkinson families
24:34have been traumatised
24:35by your crimes,
24:37not to mention
24:37their friends.
24:40Don's mother,
24:41Martha Patterson,
24:42who is aged 100,
24:43made a victim impact statement.
24:45In it,
24:46she prayed for God's healing
24:48for her family.
24:53Gail and Heather's father,
24:55now deceased,
24:57also reached his 100th birthday
24:58in 2024,
25:00but tragically,
25:01only one of his three daughters,
25:02Lynn Young,
25:03whose statement was read
25:04to the court,
25:05was alive to mark
25:06that milestone with him.
25:08And there are many references
25:09in the statements
25:10to the trauma experienced
25:12by the Patterson
25:13and Wilkinson grandchildren.
25:15Many of your adult victims
25:18struggled not only
25:18with the loss
25:19of their loved ones
25:20and the terrible way
25:21they died,
25:22but with the distress,
25:23even guilt,
25:24at their own seeming inability
25:25to ease the suffering
25:27of those close to them.
25:29They keenly feel
25:30their limitations,
25:31and in particular,
25:32the impossibility
25:33of shielding the youngest
25:35from the incessant discussion
25:37of the case
25:37in the media,
25:38online,
25:39in public spaces,
25:40even in the schoolyard.
25:43Many also struggled
25:44to cope with work
25:45and studies,
25:46and many have experienced
25:47additional financial burdens.
25:50There is, of course,
25:51great anger
25:52at the callousness
25:54of your actions.
25:55To take just one example,
25:56Ian Wilkinson's sister,
25:58Dorothy Dicker,
26:00questions,
26:01quote,
26:01how anyone could sit there
26:03and watch those four kind
26:05and caring people
26:06eat that meal.
26:09Your failure to exhibit
26:11any remorse
26:12pours salt
26:13into all the victims' wounds.
26:16The children
26:17of your direct victims
26:18speak of the distress
26:19of watching their parents
26:20suffer in hospital.
26:22For example,
26:23Don and Gail's son,
26:24Matthew,
26:24remarks,
26:25quote,
26:25watching my parents
26:27suffer in hospital
26:28from severe poisoning
26:29cause shock,
26:30grief and lasting trauma.
26:33Ian and Heather's son,
26:34David,
26:35remembers his mother
26:36being,
26:37quote,
26:37desperate for water,
26:39which she was not allowed
26:40by medical staff,
26:42and saying her,
26:43quote,
26:44insides were burning.
26:47David also mentions
26:48his father's tortured experience,
26:51quote,
26:51black lips,
26:52gaunt face,
26:53pained and serious expression.
26:58At your plea hearing,
27:00Ian Wilkinson
27:00memorably read
27:02his victim impact statement
27:03to the court.
27:06Amongst other things,
27:09he humbly expressed
27:11his great admiration
27:12and love for his wife,
27:14Heather,
27:15and his concern
27:17for others,
27:18even you.
27:21He offered you forgiveness
27:22for what you did to him.
27:24Quote,
27:25in regards to the many
27:27harms done to me,
27:28I make an offer
27:29of forgiveness to Aaron.
27:32I say harms done
27:33to me advisedly.
27:35I have no power
27:36or responsibility
27:37to forgive harms
27:38done to others.
27:40However,
27:40I encourage Aaron
27:42to receive my offer
27:43of forgiveness
27:44for those harms
27:45done to me
27:46with full confession
27:47and repentance.
27:48I bear her
27:49no ill will.
27:51That offer
27:54of forgiveness
27:55presents you
27:56with an opportunity.
27:59You would do well
28:01to embrace it
28:01in the manner
28:02he suggests.
28:07In commenting
28:08on the unprecedented
28:10coverage
28:11of your case,
28:13Ian Wilkinson
28:14also made this point.
28:16Quote,
28:16it's one of the
28:18distressing
28:19shortcomings
28:21of our society
28:22that so much
28:23attention
28:24is showered
28:25on those
28:25who do evil
28:26and so little
28:28on those
28:28who do good.
28:31Your lunch
28:32guests
28:32undoubtedly
28:33belong to
28:35that company
28:35of people
28:36among us
28:36who do good.
28:37the victim
28:40impact
28:41statements
28:41make it clear
28:42that each
28:43one of them
28:43over many
28:45years
28:45gave of themselves
28:47generously
28:47and made
28:48lasting
28:49contributions
28:49to many,
28:50many lives
28:51and in Ian's
28:52case continues
28:53to make.
28:55All of them
28:56inspired
28:57by their
28:58Christian faith
28:59were deeply
29:00invested
29:01not only
29:01in their families
29:02but in their
29:03wider communities
29:04as the statements
29:05from members
29:06of the
29:06Currumburra
29:07Baptist Church
29:08attest.
29:12A word
29:13that is used
29:13again and again
29:14in the statements
29:15to describe
29:16your crimes
29:17is quote
29:18senseless.
29:21But what also
29:23surfaces
29:23in the statements
29:24is hope
29:25and gratitude
29:28for the care
29:28shown by others.
29:31Don and Gail's
29:32daughter
29:33Anna Terrington
29:34writes quote
29:35we have to say
29:36goodbye
29:36for now
29:37to mum
29:38and dad
29:39and Heather.
29:42Don's brother
29:42Colin writes
29:43quote
29:44as Christians
29:44they were people
29:45of hope
29:46and sharing
29:47that hope
29:48my loss
29:48is not one
29:49marked by despair.
29:53Ruth Dubois
29:54expresses her
29:55great appreciation
29:56for the efforts
29:56made and compassion
29:57shown by the
29:58medical teams.
30:01Simon Patterson
30:02gives thanks
30:02quote
30:03for the incredibly
30:04strong, gentle,
30:05patient and
30:07caring support
30:07from friends,
30:08family, schools,
30:10our own church
30:11congregation,
30:12the wider church,
30:13colleagues,
30:13work clients,
30:14neighbours,
30:15police,
30:16government officers
30:17and our professional
30:19counsellors.
30:20We have experienced
30:21love in a special way
30:23since the murders.
30:27I will conclude my
30:28account of key aspects
30:29of the victim impact
30:30statements
30:31with what Don and
30:32Gail's son Matthew
30:33had to say about
30:34your betrayal of trust.
30:36Quote,
30:38Erin was embraced
30:39as part of the
30:39Patterson family.
30:41She was welcome
30:42and treated with
30:43genuine love and respect
30:44in a way she did not
30:46appear to experience
30:47from her own family.
30:49Her actions
30:50represent a profound
30:51and devastating
30:52portrayal of the
30:54trust and love
30:55extended to her.
30:59Having regard to
31:00the aggravating
31:00circumstances of your
31:02offending and the
31:02victim impact
31:03statements,
31:04I have no hesitation
31:05in finding that
31:06your offending
31:07falls into the
31:08worst category
31:08for the offences
31:09of murder and
31:10attempted murder.
31:12As the case law
31:13makes clear,
31:14the fact that it
31:14is possible to
31:15imagine even
31:16worse instances
31:18of such offences
31:19does not refute
31:20that categorisation.
31:23The gravity
31:23of your offending
31:24warrants the
31:25imposition of the
31:26maximum penalties
31:27for your crimes.
31:29I turn then
31:30to your circumstances.
31:32The information
31:33I was provided
31:34about your personal
31:35history was minimal.
31:37Your counsel
31:38simply relied
31:38on the personal
31:39history you provided
31:40in your trial
31:41testimony.
31:41There were no
31:43psychiatric or
31:44psychological reports
31:45provided, no
31:46references from
31:47character witnesses.
31:49No doubt that
31:50approach to your
31:51plea hearing was
31:53based on your
31:53instructions, but it
31:55means the account
31:56of your personal
31:57history that I am
31:58about to give is
31:59limited.
32:01You were born in
32:02Adelaide on the
32:0330th of September
32:041974, making you
32:0648 years old at the
32:07time of your offending
32:08and 50 now.
32:09Your maiden name
32:10was Scutter.
32:12In 1977, your
32:13family relocated to
32:14Melbourne, residing
32:15in Hampton.
32:17In 2004, you and
32:18Simon Patterson met
32:19whilst you were both
32:20employed at Monash
32:21City Council.
32:23Simon told the jury
32:24that he was working
32:24there as a civil
32:25engineer and you
32:26were the RSPCA's
32:28representative on the
32:29council.
32:30By 2005, you and
32:32Simon were romantically
32:34involved.
32:34In 2006, your
32:37grandmother died,
32:38leaving you a
32:38substantial inheritance.
32:40Monies from her
32:41estate were distributed
32:42between 2007 and
32:442015.
32:46During those years, you
32:48would be generous with
32:49your money to Simon's
32:50siblings, providing
32:51large, no-interest
32:52loans to them and their
32:54spouses so that they
32:55could purchase their
32:56own homes.
32:58On 2 June 2007, you
33:00and Simon married.
33:02You told the jury that
33:03your parents did not
33:04attend the wedding.
33:05They were holidaying in
33:06Russia.
33:08Soon after your
33:09marriage, you and
33:10Simon travelled around
33:11Australia and overseas
33:12for a few months before
33:13settling in Perth.
33:14Simon got a job working
33:16for an inner city
33:18shire council.
33:20In 2009, when you were
33:2234, your son was
33:23born.
33:24In April 2009, you and
33:26Simon set off with the
33:27baby to explore the top
33:28end of Australia.
33:30You reached Townsville in
33:31November 2009, at which
33:33point you parted company.
33:35You flew back to Perth.
33:37Simon drove back with
33:38the baby.
33:39You rented a cottage for
33:40you and the baby.
33:42Simon rented an on-site
33:43caravan close by.
33:45This was the first of many
33:46comparatively short-term
33:47separations.
33:49You reunited by the end
33:50of January 2010.
33:53In 2011, your father died.
33:55In that year, you also
33:57opened a second-hand
33:58bookshop in Pemberton,
33:59Western Australia.
34:01In 2013, when you were
34:04pregnant, you and Simon
34:05returned to Victoria with
34:06your son to live closer to
34:08Simon's family.
34:09In 2014, your daughter was
34:11born.
34:12In 2015, you and Simon
34:15separated permanently.
34:17In 2019, your mother died,
34:20leaving you an inheritance.
34:22In June 22, you and your
34:25children moved into a newly
34:27constructed home at 84
34:28Gibson Street, Lee and
34:29Gather, the home at which
34:31you served the fatal lunch on
34:32the 29th of July, 23.
34:35You have no relevant criminal
34:37history.
34:38You maintain your innocence.
34:41In other words, there is no
34:42evidence of remorse.
34:43I turn now to the conditions
34:47of your imprisonment.
34:49As mentioned, you have been
34:50in custody since the 2nd of
34:51November, 23.
34:53There were two affidavits
34:55tendered relating to your
34:57conditions of imprisonment.
34:58The first was sworn by a
35:00solicitor who acts for you and
35:01was based largely on your
35:02instructions.
35:03The second affidavit was
35:05sworn by Jennifer Hosking,
35:07Assistant Commissioner,
35:08Sentence Management Division
35:09at Corrections Victoria, who
35:11also testified at your plea
35:13hearing.
35:14Ms Hosking's evidence included
35:17confirmation of the following
35:18matters.
35:20You have a, quote, maximum
35:22security rating and, quote,
35:24major offender status.
35:27Because of the nature of your
35:29crimes and your notoriety, you
35:31have been assessed as being at
35:33significant risk from other
35:35prisoners.
35:37You have not been assessed as
35:39posing a risk to other
35:41prisoners.
35:41You have spent approximately 16
35:44months of your 22 months at
35:46Dame Phyllis Frost Centre in a
35:48management unit called the
35:49Gordon unit and the rest of the
35:51time in a protection unit called
35:53the Murray unit.
35:55A management unit is more
35:56restrictive than a protection
35:58unit.
35:59You have been in the Gordon unit
36:01continuously for the last 15
36:03months.
36:04The Gordon unit has about 20
36:06cells.
36:06You are not permitted to mix with the
36:10other women in the Gordon unit.
36:12You have spent at least 22 hours in
36:14your cell every day that you have
36:17been in the Gordon unit.
36:19There have been 16 days since November
36:2224 where, because of lockdowns, you have
36:24been confined to your cell for the entire
36:2724 hours per day.
36:28The maximum period that a prisoner in the
36:33Gordon unit could have out of their cell on
36:35any given day is four hours, but, quote, that
36:39wouldn't happen very often.
36:42Your meals and medicine are currently delivered
36:45through a flap in your cell door.
36:46There is a small concrete yard, approximately
36:512 metres by 1.5 metres, which adjoins your
36:54cell, which, with permission, you may access
36:58for fresh air.
37:00If prisoners are using the larger exercise
37:02yard, which abuts your exercise yard, you may
37:06not use your small yard.
37:10During your time in the Gordon unit, you have
37:13barely had any contact with other individuals.
37:16Permission is required for you to communicate
37:19with any other prisoner, which, according to
37:21your counsel, is complicated by the fact that
37:24you are not informed of the identities of the
37:26other prisoners in the Gordon unit.
37:30You currently have approval to communicate with
37:32one other prisoner in the Gordon unit through
37:35a wire mesh when the two of you are permitted to
37:38use your respective adjoining exercise yards.
37:42That other prisoner is undergoing a lengthy
37:45sentence for terrorism offences and has attacked
37:48other prisoners.
37:50You did not ask to communicate with that person and
37:53have not communicated with her.
37:55The suggestion that you should communicate with her was
37:58made by a corrections officer.
38:02There is an intercom in your cell which, if permission
38:05is granted, you may use to communicate with one other
38:08prisoner in the unit at a time.
38:10But you have not done so.
38:13In order to attend any other part of the prison, for
38:16example, the visitor's centre or the library, you are
38:19driven there, escorted by two corrections officers.
38:24While, theoretically, prisoners in the Gordon unit are
38:27able to access the prison library twice per week, for 20
38:30minutes at a time, you have not been able to do so because of
38:35staff shortages and a rule that you may not access the library if
38:39another is doing so.
38:41Consequently, you have only been able to access the library a
38:44handful of times during your time in the Gordon unit.
38:49United Nations guidelines, known as the Bangkok rules, provide
38:53that a prisoner should not be in separation for more than 15
38:56days at a time.
38:58But you have now been in separation continuously for 15 months.
39:02There are two prisoners in the Gordon unit who have been there in
39:07excess of three years.
39:11And whilst the primary principle in the placement of prisoners is to
39:14manage and place them in the least restrictive environment necessary to
39:19ensure the safety and security of the individual prisoner and other
39:22prisoners, the least restrictive environment can be very restrictive.
39:27As for your future conditions of imprisonment, whilst your placement in the
39:35Gordon unit is reviewed monthly, Ms Hosking was unable to say whether you
39:41would ever be moved from the Gordon unit.
39:45I infer that given the unprecedented media coverage of your case and the books,
39:50documentaries and TV series about you, which are all in the pipeline, you are
39:55likely to remain a notorious prisoner for many years to come and as such remain at
40:01significant risk from other prisoners.
40:06I turn then to a number of relevant sentencing principles and rules.
40:12Section 5 of the Sentencing Act 1991 declares that the only purposes for which
40:17sentences may be imposed are just punishment, specific and general deterrence, rehabilitation,
40:25denunciation and protection of the community.
40:30I have had regard to all of these sentencing purposes in formulating my sentences, but
40:35rehabilitation has taken a back seat because of the gravity of your offending.
40:39Other provisions of the Sentencing Act that are of particular relevance to your case are as
40:45follows. Under sections 6a to 6f, you fall to be sentenced as a serious violent offender in
40:53respect of the three murders, meaning that the protection of the community is the principal
40:58purpose for which the sentences on those counts must be imposed.
41:04Under section 6f, your status as a serious violent offender must be entered in the court records.
41:09Section 11a provides relevantly that if a court sentences an offender to be imprisonment for the
41:17term of her natural life, the court must, as part of the sentence, fix a period during which the
41:22offender is not eligible to be released on parole, unless it considers that the nature of the offence
41:29makes the fixing of such a period inappropriate.
41:32Section 11a provides that where an offender is sentenced to life imprisonment, the sentencer
41:42must fix a non-parole period of at least 30 years, unless it is not in the interests of justice to do so.
41:51Is it inappropriate to fix a non-parole period?
41:56Would fixing a non-parole period be contrary to the interests of justice?
42:02As mentioned above, this is the main dispute that I have to determine.
42:09Sentencing case law establishes that as a general rule, harsher than normal conditions of imprisonment
42:15will warrant mitigation of penalty.
42:19There is nothing about your conduct whilst in custody which might cast doubt on the application
42:24of that general rule.
42:25As Ms Hosking indicated, you are in a management unit to protect you from other prisoners, not
42:34vice versa, nor do you have any relevant criminal history.
42:39In their written submissions, the prosecution conceded that your conditions of imprisonment
42:45are more burdensome than for a mainstream prisoner, and that they are likely to remain so for the
42:51foreseeable future, the prosecution submitted that this is a, quote, relevant consideration
42:58for sentence.
43:00In oral submissions, the prosecution conceded that this consideration was not just relevant,
43:07but, quote, important and, quote, weighty, while still pressing for life imprisonment with
43:16no possibility of parole, you have effectively been held in continuous solitary confinement
43:24for the last 15 months.
43:26And at the very least, there is a substantial chance that for your protection, you will continue
43:32to be held in solitary confinement for years to come.
43:36The Court of Appeal in Yat against the King referred without criticism to the observation that, quote,
43:44quote, the adverse health effects of solitary confinement are well established.
43:50I note, too, that Ms Hosking stated at the plea hearing that, quote,
43:55being separated has negative outcomes for people.
43:59We're very aware of that.
44:03The harsh prison conditions that you have experienced already, and the likely prospect of solitary
44:10confinement for the foreseeable future, are important and weighty considerations which should count
44:17for something in the sentencing exercise.
44:20In my view, the only scope for making them count is by the fixing of a non-parole period.
44:28In opposing the imposition of a non-parole period, the prosecution relied on the Queen against Colston,
44:35where the offender was sentenced to life imprisonment without a non-parole period for the savage murders
44:41of three people.
44:43But that case makes clear that, quote,
44:46where there is a substantial factor pointing towards clemency,
44:51as I consider your present and likely future conditions of imprisonment to be,
44:57the fixing of a non-parole period may be appropriate,
45:01even for an offender who has committed multiple murders.
45:06Fixing a non-parole period is not to undervalue the horrendous nature of your offending.
45:12Your total effective sentence will be life imprisonment,
45:16and the period during which you will be ineligible for parole will be a very substantial one.
45:23Please stand.
45:24All sentences are to be served concurrently.
45:54The total effective sentence is life imprisonment,
45:58and I fix a non-parole period of 33 years.
46:04I declare that you have served 676 days by way of pre-sentence detention.
46:12Finally, and by consent, I make the disposal order sought by the prosecution.
46:18I will be ص dites-en-la-less-sie.
46:19I will be receiving a non-parole period of 33 years.
46:20Finally, there is a non-parole period of 33 years.
46:20If you are a non-parole period of 33 years,
46:22I will move the
46:38ineligible for the division.
Recommended
1:16