An Australian woman has been sentenced to life in prison, with no chance of release for at least 33 years, after being found guilty of murdering three family members and attempting to kill a fourth by serving them a meal laced with deadly mushrooms. Erin Patterson, 50, was convicted of killing her in-laws Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, and Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson, 66, after serving them a toxic beef Wellington at her home in Victoria in 2023. Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson, a local pastor, survived but suffered long-term health complications after spending weeks in a coma. The Su

An Australian woman has been sentenced to life in prison, with no chance of release for at least 33 years, after being found guilty of murdering three family members and attempting to kill a fourth by serving them a meal laced with deadly mushrooms. Erin Patterson, 50, was convicted of killing her in-laws Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, and Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson, 66, after serving them a toxic beef Wellington at her home in Victoria in 2023. Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson, a local pastor, survived but suffered long-term health complications after spending weeks in a coma. The Supreme Court of Victoria described Patterson’s crimes as the “worst category” of offending. Justice Christopher Beale said they involved an “elaborate cover-up” and imposed three consecutive life sentences for the murders, plus 25 years for the attempted murder. Patterson’s estranged husband, Simon Patterson, had been invited to the lunch but declined, partly because he suspected his wife had previously tried to poison him. Throughout the trial, Patterson maintained her innocence, insisting that the deadly death cap mushrooms had been added by accident and denying any intent to harm her relatives. Currently held in a maximum-security women’s prison, Patterson spends 22 hours a day in her cell with no contact with other prisoners due to her “major offender” status. The sentence is one of the longest ever imposed on a female offender in Australia, meaning Patterson will be in her 80s before she can apply for parole status.

A little more informed. A little more connected.