- Erin Patterson has been found guilty of three counts of murder and two counts of attempted murder over the 2023 death cap mushroom lunch.
- Her former in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson, and Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson died; Ian Wilkinson survived after weeks in intensive care.
- Prosecutors argued Patterson deliberately poisoned the meal, while she claimed the mushrooms were store-bought and denied wrongdoing.
- The jury is still considering three additional attempted murder charges linked to her ex-husband; sentencing will follow, with life imprisonment possible.
MELBOURNE – A Victorian Supreme Court jury has found Erin Patterson guilty of three counts of murder and two counts of attempted murder, concluding a high-profile trial over the deaths of three people who consumed a meal she prepared in July 2023.
The verdict was delivered on Monday after six days of jury deliberation. Patterson, 50, had pleaded not guilty to all charges.
The charges stemmed from a lunch served at Patterson’s home in Leongatha, where she prepared a beef Wellington dish containing death cap mushrooms.
Her former in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson, and Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson died after consuming the meal. Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson, survived after weeks in intensive care.
According to ABC News, Justice Elizabeth Hollingworth discharged the jury on Monday after they returned verdicts on five of the eight charges.
The jury was yet to decide on three additional counts of attempted murder relating to earlier alleged poisoning incidents involving Patterson’s ex-husband, Simon Patterson.
Prosecutors argued that Patterson had deliberately served the toxic mushrooms with the intent to harm, citing inconsistencies in her statements to police and online searches related to poisonous fungi.
Crown Prosecutor Amanda Forster said during the trial that Patterson “knew exactly what she was doing,” and presented evidence suggesting the act was premeditated.
Patterson denied the allegations, maintaining that the mushrooms were purchased from an Asian grocery store and that she was later hospitalised with symptoms consistent with poisoning.
“I didn’t do anything. I loved them,” Patterson said in a police-recorded interview played in court, as reported by The Guardian.
The trial attracted extensive public and media attention throughout Australia.
Residents and family members affected by the incident were present during the court proceedings, and significant coverage was given across domestic and international media.
Legal analysts told 9News that the jury’s partial verdict suggests deliberations over the remaining charges may have been more complex or lacked sufficient consensus.
Erin Patterson has been remanded in custody and is expected to be sentenced at a later date. A conviction for murder in Victoria carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
The case remains one of the most closely watched in recent Victorian legal history, with further proceedings expected to determine the outcomes of the outstanding charges.