On Trial Australia

Former Jetstar pilot Gregory Lynn says he is ‘the victim’ - as he makes a bid for bail ahead of a retrial next year over the alleged murder of retiree Carol Clay, who vanished while camping in Victoria's Wonnangatta Valley in 2020.

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Accused and convicted criminals are using the legal system to hide their identities. 
Justin Quill, top media lawyer at Thomsons, takes us inside the world of suppression orders and how Victoria became the 'suppression state'. 

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The mushroom murder trial captured attention all over the world, but unlike most cases, people began travelling to court to see it for themselves. In this episode we’re joined by Tammy Egglestone, who’d never attended court and then spent months in Morwell watching this case unfold. 

Erin Patterson has appealed against her convictions by a Supreme Court jury, maintains her innocence, and prosecutors have also appealed for a harsher sentence. The Victorian Court of Appeal has yet to hand down its decision in both appeals. 

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As the jury deliberated in Erin Patterson’s mushroom murder trial, they were staying in the same hotel as police and the media. So what actually happened during the accommodation cross over? Senior reporter at The Age, Chris Vedelago, joins Penny and Erin to unpack it all. 

Erin Patterson has appealed against her convictions by a Supreme Court jury, maintains her innocence, and prosecutors have also appealed for a harsher sentence. The Victorian court of appeal has yet to hand down its decision in both appeals. 

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Erin Patterson's interest in foraging for wild mushrooms was at the centre of the second day of her appeal against her convictions for murder and attempted murder, which she has always denied, as prosecutors zeroed in on the lies she told police. The DPP also put forward its case for why she should never be released from prison as they appeal her sentence. 

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Lawyers for mushroom murderer Erin Patterson claim the jury could have been contaminated by a hotel blunder and that the killer was forced to take the stand. Her legal team have argued seven key issues in an attempt to have her convictions thrown out. 

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In February 2020, the name Hannah Clarke was etched into the national consciousness. But who was Hannah?
She was a natural leader, full of energy and positivity. She was a supportive friend, loyal daughter and sister, but most of all an incredible mother. 

As we try to understand the evolution of Hannah’s relationship with Rowan Baxter, her family and friends open up their hearts to share their most intimate memories, and their heartbreak, watching a strong woman change before their eyes. 

Learn more here about Small Steps 4 Hannah 

If you or anyone you k...

If you're looking for a new podcast over the holidays, take a listen to Hannah's Story.

In February 2020 the name Hannah Clarke was etched into the national consciousness after her estranged husband killed her and their three young children in one of the most horrific acts of domestic violence Australia has seen. It sparked outrage, shock and a community conversation about a form of domestic violence few had even heard of; coercive control.

This multi-award winning podcast by Melissa Downes & Jess Lodge explores every layer of that conversation with those connected to the tragedy, some s...

Gregory Lynn has won his appeal and had his murder conviction quashed. The Court of Appeal has ordered a retrial on the charge of murdering Carol Clay.

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We can now reveal the High Country killer was charged with threatening his first wife's life, before she was found dead in 1999. It comes as a gag order expired, allowing the media to report on allegations of violence against Lisa Lynn - including the diaries she kept.

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We unpack Gregory Lynn’s appeal hearing, as a judge questions if the killer could be re tried over Russell Hill’s death. 

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Former missing persons squad boss Andrew Stamper takes listeners inside the high profile investigation while offering a rare insight into his 40-year police career.

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Erin Patterson’s new barrister tells the court his team needs more time to prepare an appeal case against the triple murderer’s conviction.

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If you're looking for your next investigative podcast, take a listen...

One tragic night in 2018, what began as an NRL grand final party in a quiet town on the Queensland coast spiralled into a storm of lies, drunken embellishment and a bungled emergency response. By dawn, two men - Tom Davy & Corey Christensen - were dead, killed by a teenager they’d never met. 

Seven years on, 60 Minutes’ Adam Hegarty has travelled to Alva Beach to uncover the truth behind one of Australia's most baffling legal cases that raises the burning question: How do two famil...

The prosecution calls for Erin Patterson to be handed a life sentence, without the possibility of parole. The court is also given a rare insight into the killer’s life in a maximum security prison cell, including the personal items she keeps.

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The only survivor of the deadly mushroom lunch says he forgives the woman who tried to kill him, pastor Ian Wilkinson telling the court ‘now I am no longer Erin Patterson’s victim, and she has become the victim of my kindness’. Speaking through tears the family she tried to destroy say they can not understand her murderous wrath.

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Listen for the first time what the jury didn't hear, including Simon Patterson's claims his estranged wife was trying to kill him for years, secret poison papers found on her electronic devices and the killer's imaginary cat.

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A date is set for Gregory Lynn’s appeal a year after he was convicted of murdering Carol Clay.

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In the aftermath of the trial, Erin and Penny take listeners through their observations from the courtroom, things the jury didn’t see and just how big the global attention is.

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In an extended interview, Leongatha doctor and trial witness Christopher Webster sits down with our hosts to speak about his interactions with murderer Erin Patterson when she arrived on his hospital doorstep in the aftermath of the fatal lunch. It’s a case, he says, that’s changed his life forever.

Please be advised: This episode contains strong language.

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12 jurors have convicted Erin Patterson of three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. Come inside the courtroom as the verdict was handed down and hear some of the evidence for the first time.

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After 6 days of deliberations, the jury has returned with its verdicts. We bring you some of the reaction as it unfolded in Morwell. 

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After 40 trial days, the jury retires to deliberate. With two jurors balloted off, the remaining 12 are now sequestered, unable to return home. The judge gives them a final warning to avoid discussing the case with anyone outside the secure jury room.

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The final instructions to the jury, known as the judge’s charge, are underway. Justice Christopher Beale gives directions on the principles of law while also summarising parts of the evidence. He says the jurors, and only them, are the judges of the facts. 

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Erin Patterson’s barrister finishes his final plea to the jury, telling them they must find his client not guilty. He points to four ‘ridiculous convoluted propositions’ from the prosecution and argues the accused never had any reason to harm the lunch guests. He urges the jurors to put themselves in her shoes.

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The Crown closes its case, accusing Patterson of engaging in multiple calculated deceptions and telling lies even when her lunch guests were gravely ill. Rogers also accused Patterson of trying to play the jury.

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During the accused killer's final hours on the stand, more questions are raised around gastric bypass surgery and an 11th hour bid for a fresh police statement challenges her account. Erin Patterson also maintains she fed fatal lunch leftovers to her children, and answers three final accusations from the prosecution.

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The accused disputes claims she was never sick. She is also pressed on possible weight loss surgery and if she has “two faces”.

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During cross examination, Erin Patterson denies telling relatives she had cancer. She also denies ever thinking her cancer lie could remain a secret because her lunch guests would be dead.

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Erin Patterson gives evidence that she began to think foraged mushrooms she’d dried in the weeks before the lunch could have ended up in the meal. Telling the court her estranged husband asked if she'd used her dehydrator to poison his parents - and that she panicked, dumping the kitchen appliance and resetting a phone. 

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The accused killer tells the jury she loved mushrooms and developed an interest in foraging for them during covid lockdowns. She admits there must have been death cap mushrooms in the meal she served.

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Erin Patterson gives evidence. The accused killer chokes back tears as she recalls a “traumatic birth”. She describes her mother in-law as patient and supportive and reveals she wanted to convert Simon Patterson to atheism before her own spiritual experience. 

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The lead investigator is quizzed on exactly what CCTV from the evening of the fatal lunch shows. He also tells the jury, pulling all of the accused killer’s phone records was too expensive.

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The lead detective continues his evidence cataloguing phones connected to the accused killer, noting one has never been found. Erin Patterson’s shopping receipts and medical records are also shown to the jury.

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The jury watches a police interview with the accused killer. When asked why she hosted her ex partner’s family for lunch, Erin Patterson replies ‘I love them’ and denies owning a food dehydrator. 

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A public health official tells the court she had trouble reaching Erin Patterson on the phone as she tried to find the source of the poisoning. The jury hears the pair exchanged text messages  and a digital forensics officer faces questions from the defence. 

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An intensive care specialist tells the court how doctors fought to save the four lunch guests' lives, and recalls how close Ian Wilkinson came to death.

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Facebook messages discovered on a phone found in Erin Patterson’s home are read to the jury, calling Simon Patterson a ‘deadbeat’ and his parents ‘a lost cause’. The court is also shown photos of mushrooms in a dehydrator and screenshots of cancer information, taken from a tablet police say was seized from Patterson’s home.

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The jury is shown internet history taken from devices seized from Erin Patterson's home. 

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A phone tower expert answers dozens of questions about the limitations of mobile phone records. Service station footage is also played to the jury, showing the accused killer visiting a toilet area.

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