An Australian woman has been sentenced to life in prison, with no chance of release for at least 33 years, after being convicted of murdering three relatives and attempting to kill a fourth by serving a toxic mushroom meal.
Erin Patterson, 50, was handed three consecutive life sentences for the murders and an additional 25-year term for the attempted murder by a judge in the Supreme Court of Victoria on Monday. Justice Christopher Beale described the offending as the "worst category" and said the crimes involved an "elaborate cover-up." Patterson will be in her 80s before she can seek parole.
The victims were Don Patterson, 70, and his wife Gail Patterson, 70, and Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson, 66. They died after eating a beef Wellington at Patterson's home in Victoria in 2023 that contained death-cap mushrooms, a highly toxic fungus. Ian Wilkinson, Heather Wilkinson's husband and a local pastor, survived after being placed in a coma and has ongoing health problems related to the poisoning. Patterson's estranged husband, Simon Patterson, had been due to attend the lunch but cancelled at the last minute.
Patterson has consistently maintained her innocence, telling police and the court that the toxic mushrooms were added accidentally and that she never intended to harm her relatives. Prosecutors did not allege a motive during the nine-week trial that ended two months ago, and Justice Beale said he would not speculate on why the offences were committed. "Only you know why you committed them," he told Patterson.
The judge said he was required to impose the maximum available penalty given the gravity of the crimes, noting that Patterson showed no pity for her victims in the aftermath, and that her lack of remorse had deepened the victims' families' suffering. Prosecutors had sought whole-life terms with no prospect of release. Justice Beale, while concluding the offences were among the most serious, said he allowed the possibility of parole because of the severe custodial conditions Patterson has faced, including about 15 months spent in solitary confinement and extended periods confined for her own safety. The judge said Patterson is likely to remain a "notorious prisoner" and therefore at significant risk from fellow inmates.
Outside court, Ian Wilkinson, the sole survivor of the lunch, spoke publicly for the first time since the sentencing hearing. He thanked police, prosecutors and medical staff who treated the victims and himself and urged people to "be kind to each other." At a pre-sentence hearing two weeks ago, Wilkinson described feeling "half-alive" after losing his wife and two close friends.
The sentencing attracted intense public interest. For the first time in its history, the Supreme Court of Victoria allowed a television camera into the courtroom so the proceedings could be broadcast live; previously only in-house cameras had been used to livestream sentencings.
Patterson will serve three consecutive life terms and the additional 25-year term consecutively, the court said, and has 28 days to lodge an appeal against both her convictions and the sentence. The case has prompted renewed attention to the risks posed by death-cap mushrooms and has left relatives and the local community grappling with the consequences of the poisoning.