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Erin Patterson, the woman convicted in Australia’s shocking “mushroom murder” case, has officially filed an appeal against her convictions, seeking to overturn one of the longest prison sentences ever given to a female offender in the country.
Erin Patterson, aged 51, who is serving a life sentence for the notorious mushroom murders, has lodged an appeal against her convictions. Patterson was found guilty of killing three family members and attempting to murder another by serving a meal laced with toxic mushrooms in her home in Victoria in 2023.
Under Australian law, appeals are not automatic, meaning Patterson’s legal team first had to convince the Court of Appeal that her trial may have contained legal errors. The court officially accepted her appeal on Monday, although the specific grounds for her challenge have not yet been disclosed.
During her 11-week trial, Patterson maintained her innocence, insisting that the deadly incident was a tragic accident and denying that she had intentionally used death cap mushrooms in the beef Wellington meal. The victims included her in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, and Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson, 66. Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson, a local pastor, survived after falling into a coma but continues to suffer long-term health issues.
After seven days of deliberation, the jury unanimously found Patterson guilty on all charges. Justice Christopher Beale handed her a life sentence, ruling that she would not be eligible for parole for at least 33 years — meaning she would be in her 80s before applying for release.
Despite the verdict, Patterson now has a chance to challenge the decision. Her legal team benefited from a new procedural rule extending the 28-day appeal deadline without requiring an explanation. Meanwhile, prosecutors have also appealed, arguing that her sentence was “manifestly inadequate.”
The case gripped Australia, drawing intense media attention throughout the nine-week trial. Testimonies suggested Patterson had intentionally foraged death cap mushrooms and used a false cancer diagnosis to lure her victims to the fatal meal. It was also revealed that her estranged husband, Simon Patterson — who cancelled his attendance that day — believed she had tried to poison him in the past, an incident that left him in a coma and fighting for his life.
Patterson is currently held at Melbourne’s Dame Phyllis Frost Centre, a maximum-security women’s prison. She reportedly spends 22 hours a day in her cell due to her “major offender” classification. Justice Beale acknowledged that the extraordinary media coverage and public scrutiny surrounding the case would make Patterson “a notorious prisoner for many years to come,” posing risks to her safety from other inmates.
