Australian mother jailed for poisoning relatives with Death Cap mushrooms to appeal conviction

An Australian woman jailed for life after killing three relatives with a toxic mushroom-laced meal will appeal her conviction.

Erin Patterson claims the trial in which was found guilty of murdering three elderly relatives of her estranged husband, was unfair and that there were 'irregularities'.

Last July, the 51-year-old was convicted of killing her mother-in-law Gail Patterson, father-in-law Donald Patterson and Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson - and attempting to murder a fourth with Death Cap mushrooms in 2023.

Reverend Ian Wilkinson, who also ate the meal which was served alongside mashed potatoes and green beans, survived after receiving a liver transplant and spending months in hospital.

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He said he was left feeling "half alive" after the ordeal.

Patterson was jailed for life with a minimum of 33 years in September - one of the longest sentences ever given to a woman in Australia.

Throughout the 11-week murder trial, Patterson maintained her innocence and said the poisoning was accidental.

On Friday, a court heard she will make her appeal against the conviction in August.

In documents lodged with the Court of Appeal last November, Patterson's grounds for the application included that a "fundamental irregularity" occurred while the jury was sequestered.

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She also claimed various pieces of evidence introduced, including cell tower location data and messages from Facebook friends, were either irrelevant or unfairly prejudicial, and that she was subjected to an "unfair and oppressive" cross-examination.

Prosecutors have separately filed an appeal in October against her sentence, describing it as "manifestly inadequate".

During Patterson's trial in Morwell, in the state of Victoria, it was heard that she fabricated a cancer diagnosis to use as an excuse not to invite her children to the lunch at her home in Leongatha, pretending to want to discuss how to break the news to them after the meal.

The four guests fell ill immediately after eating her food. Mrs Wilkinson and Mrs Patterson died on 4 August, and Mr Patterson a day later.

According to foraging website Wild Food UK, the symptoms of eating a Death Cap can start several hours after ingestion, and include severe vomiting, diarrhoea and abdominal pains.

In serious cases, symptoms can return after several days and end in death from kidney and liver failure.

(c) Sky News 2026: Australian mother jailed for poisoning relatives with Death Cap mushrooms to appeal conviction<