Closing address in mushroom murder trial
Erin Patterson's defence lawyer is continuing his closing address to the jury -- after eight weeks of evidence in the triple-murder trial. Ms Patterson is accused of murdering three of her family members by serving them poisonous death cap mushrooms in a lunch at her home in 20-23.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
37 minutes ago
- News.com.au
‘You die': New York mafia boss unleashes on gangs in Sydney, Melbourne
Crime gangs playing out their drug wars on Sydney and Melbourne streets are lacking the moral compass of old school New York criminals who made sure 'their own' were protected, according to Michael Franzese, one of the world's most powerful former mob bosses. 'I spent over 20 years in that life, I grew up in it with my father, a major figure, and the truth is we didn't go around killing innocent people, we took care of people in our neighbourhood,' Franzese told 'You couldn't get involved in the drug business, you deal with drugs you die.' Franzese said allowing innocent people to get caught in the crossfire of organised crime was an example of 'morality being at an all time low'. Since the gang war in Sydney began in October 2020, 28 people have been shot and killed – eight of them innocent people, while a further six have been injured – many of them children. On Monday a f50-year-old emale kebab shop worker was caught in the crossfire, critically injured when two men stormed the store and opened fire. Melbourne is facing the same crisis, and was shocked in January this year when 27-year-old 'completely innocent' Katie Tangey died after arsonists linked to the city's tobacco wars hit the wrong house. Franzese said the rise in attacks on innocent people was a reflection on the deterioration of society in general. 'I think it's a reflection on the decline generally of the world we live in. When the mafia originally started in the US there were lots of street gang wars, innocent people caught in the crossfire but it was all straightened out, divided into families and we were very careful,' the 73-year-old said on the eve of his Australian visit. 'We had a code of conduct. Today I would say it's the attitude in general. The conduct has been deteriorating.' Franzese, who was played by Joseph Bono in Martin Scorsese's classic movie Goodfellas, was the caporegime of the New York Colombo crime family but left in 1995 after serving eight years for a $520m tax dodge. He became a major target of law enforcement and was arrested 18 times, indicted seven times and had two federal racketeering cases brought against him, one by former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. These days Franzese travels the world telling stories of his mob days, being as 'honest' as he can about his violent way of life, hoping he can wipe some of the shine, courtesy of Hollywood, of a career in crime. 'I like to be as honest as I can, it gives me a lot of credibility,' he says, though shying away from directly answering a question about whether he has committed murder. 'When people ask me that I tell them I lived a violent life at a violent time and if you're part of the life then you are part of the violence. People are usually satisfied with that answer.' Forced to postpone his planned trip to Australia because of immigration hold-ups, Franzese has now provided all the paperwork about his criminal history to satisfy officials and will hold talks in Sydney and Melbourne in July. 'There's a lot of interest in my former life especially in the last four or five years because of social media raising the level of interest about mafia and mob life in general,' Franzese said. 'No doubt Hollywood has played the major part. There has never been any kind of organised crime life that has been romanticised and publicised by the media and entertainment industry as much as the New York mob life,' he said. 'No other group has been covered in such a romantic way.' But the reality is a world away. 'People were very upset when I walked away. The bottom line is I had a lot of years where I struggled because my boss was very upset and took it very personally,' he said. 'You are not allowed to walk away. I need to lie very low, I moved to California. The bottom line is I did not join witness protection or cause hurt to anybody so it turned out okay for me.' The catalyst was a woman. 'I wanted to marry her. The mob life, the mafia life, it's a bad lifestyle. I don't call the guys bad, I had many friends. Good people do bad things. Some very good people did bad things and at the time we believed it was justified. 'The life is bad though because I don't know any family member of that life that wasn't devastated. My dad was in prison for 42 years. My mum blamed him for everything, and rightly so. 'I knew I had to change to preserve my family. I chose my wife over the life. We've been married for 40 years so I made the right decision.'
News.com.au
2 hours ago
- News.com.au
Tributes flow for Tasmanian cop shot dead while on duty
A Tasmania Police officer who was killed in the line of duty on Monday will be honoured with a police funeral for his service to both the force and the community. Constable Keith Smith has been remembered as a dedicated officer who loved his job and cherished the community he was privileged to serve. Tasmania Police Commissioner Donna Adams has announced a police funeral would be held next Friday, June 27. 'This week has been an incredibly difficult time for our Tasmania Police family,' she said on Friday. 'For many Tasmania Police officers, Keith was more than a colleague – he was a friend, a mentor and a true embodiment of what it means to serve.' A memorial website created by Tasmania Police has received dozens of messages of support from emergency service officials, politicians, community figures, colleagues, locals, and even members of the international policing community. Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff posted on X that 'the love of an entire state' was with Constable Smith's loved ones. 'You will have every possible support made available as we come to grips with this heartbreaking tragedy,' he said. South Australia Police Commissioner Grant Stevens said the death was a reminder that 'policing is an inherently dangerous profession'. 'Our officers accept the risks of performing their duty to protect the community. Despite this understanding, the impact is always significant and wide reaching when a police officer is tragically killed,' the Commissioner said. 'Please know that our thoughts are with all members of the Tasmania Police, and of course, in particular, Constable Smith's family.' Tongan Police Commissioner Geoff Turner expressed his sympathies to Constable Smith's family, saying he hoped they would 'draw comfort' from the knowledge that the international police community was standing by them. 'Support for Keith's family extends beyond the borders of Australia to the wider blue Pacific policing family. Faka'apa'apa atu'. Jyron Flannery, a 19-year old aspiring chef who was raised in the area, said that words could not express 'the deep sorrow felt by all of us who knew Keith'. 'He wasn't just a police officer, he was a guardian, a mentor and a true friend to many in the community,' Mr Flannery said. 'Whenever I'd come across him around town, especially when I was younger and in trouble … he had a way of calming me down and looking out for me … making sure I stayed on the right path.' Tasmania Police said the funeral would only be open to family, friends, invited guests and police. Constable Smith was killed earlier this week while serving a repossession warrant to a home on a rural property near North Motton in Queensland's northwest. Tasmania Police allege Constable Smith and a colleague were approaching the property when he was 'shot and killed' by 'a member of the public'. A man has been charged with murder and a slew of other charges related to the incident, and is due to appear in Launceston Magistrates court in early July.
ABC News
2 hours ago
- ABC News
Australian couple won't face prosecution after using alleged commercial surrogacy service to have baby abroad
A Queensland couple who was referred to authorities over allegations they used commercial surrogacy overseas to have a baby, will not be charged, police have confirmed. The decision has been welcomed by surrogacy advocates who argue Australia's patchwork of laws were "not fit for purpose" and should be changed. Last month, the ABC revealed Queensland police were making "inquiries" after a federal court ordered documents be referred to authorities to consider whether the couple should be prosecuted. "It is not in contention that the applicants have entered into a commercial surrogacy arrangement … and as such are liable to prosecution," the Federal Circuit and Family Court judgement on January 28 said. It said the Brisbane-based husband and wife were to pay at least 84,000 euros — about $140,000 — to an overseas company under a commercial surrogacy agreement in 2023. But the court had no evidence before it of what payment or other benefits were made to the 37-year-old surrogate. Commercial surrogacy is illegal in Australia, with Queensland, NSW and the ACT also making it an offence for its residents to engage in it overseas. The couple, who had been trying for a baby for more than 15 years, had applied to the court for a parenting order of the child, who was born overseas last year. A birth certificate, issued by the country where the baby was born, named the man from the couple as the father, and the surrogate as the mother. The court said the surrogate mother deposed to having entered into a surrogacy and child-bearing agreement with the couple and the company, although a copy of that agreement was not before the court. In 2023, she was implanted with an embryo using a donor egg from another woman and the Brisbane man's sperm. She gave birth in 2024. "The surrogate eschews any intention of having any contact or relationship with the child," the judgement said. Justice Catherine Carew ordered documents from the case be referred to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions Queensland to consider whether the Brisbane couple should be prosecuted under section 56 of the Surrogacy Act 2010 (Qld). It is believed in cases such as this a complaint must be made within one year from the time when the matter arose. In late April, the QPS confirmed it was aware of the matter and "conducting inquiries". This week it told the ABC the case had been investigated by the Fortitude Valley Criminal Investigation Branch. "As a result, the investigation is finalised. No one has been charged," a spokesperson said. It is understood police liaised with lawyers and other agencies. Law experts have previously told the ABC they believed no-one in Australia had been successfully prosecuted for overseas commercial surrogacy Surrogacy Australia board member Sam Everingham hailed the decision as evidence Australia's surrogacy laws "aren't workable in the current form". "We don't have a good enough surrogacy system here in Australia," he said. "Penalising people for responding to that lack of appropriate surrogacy infrastructure in Australia is just crazy." The decision comes amid an Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) review into the country's surrogacy laws, with its final report due by July 29, 2026. Mr Everingham, who is also a director with Growing Families, an education and support organisation for Australians undertaking surrogacy internationally, said the Brisbane case reinforced the importance of the ALRC's review. He said he hoped the review would lead to Australians having better access to surrogacy locally by "having a compensated model here" and not making criminals of "people creating families". Accredited family law specialist and Surrogacy Australia president Sarah Bevan, whose practice represented the surrogate mother in the case, said the Queensland decision would come as a "significant relief" to all people who had become parents through international surrogacy. "It is far preferable for Australians not to have to resort to international surrogacy," she said.
