MELBOURNE – On Monday, an Australian judge handed a life sentence to Erin Patterson for the triple murder of her estranged husband’s relatives, using toxic death cap mushrooms. Patterson will not be eligible for parole for 33 years.
Justice Christopher Beale told the Victoria state Supreme Court that Patterson’s crimes involved an enormous betrayal of trust.
In July, Patterson was found guilty of killing Don and Gail Patterson along with Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson, by serving beef Wellington pastries poisoned with wild death cap mushrooms.
Patterson was also convicted of attempting to murder Heather’s husband Ian Wilkinson, who spent weeks in a hospital.
Her estranged husband, Simon Patterson, was invited but chose not to join the meal in July 2023, which was served to her in-laws, and her husband’s aunt and uncle at her residence.
Judge Beale remarked, “Your victims were family through marriage, and they had shown kindness to you and your children for many years, as you conceded during your testimony.”
He continued, “You not only ended the lives of three individuals and seriously harmed Ian Wilkinson’s health, causing widespread heartache to the Patterson and Wilkinson families, but also brought immense sorrow to your own children by depriving them of their cherished grandparents.”
Both the prosecution and defense agreed that a life sentence was fitting for the 50-year-old, considering the charges of three murders and an attempted murder.
But defense lawyers had asked for Patterson to become eligible for parole after serving 30 years. Prosecutors had argued she should never be considered for parole because she did not deserve the court’s mercy.
Beale said Patterson had also intended to kill her husband if he had accepted his invitation to lunch.
She had pretended to have been diagnosed with cancer as a reason to bring them together. She claimed to have wanted advice on how to break the news to her two children, who were not present at the lunch.
Beale accepted Ian Wilkinson’s account that the guests were served grey plates while Patterson ate from an orange-tan plate. This was to ensure she didn’t accidentally eat a poisoned meal, Beale said.
The judge said he would not speculate on her motive.
Patterson maintained that she had added foraged mushrooms to the meals by accident.
Patterson has been in custody since she was charged on Nov. 2, 2023. Her sentence is backdated until then. She has 28 days from her sentencing to appeal against her convictions and the severity of her sentence.
The case has attracted enormous public interest in Victoria, nationally and internationally. Because of this, the Victorian Supreme Court allowed for the first time a sentencing hearing to be broadcast live on television.
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