Australian convicted murderer Erin Patterson has lodged an appeal to overturn her guilty verdicts for killing three people with toxic mushrooms, local media reported, after a trial that sparked a global media frenzy. Patterson, 51, was handed life in prison with parole this year for serving a beef Wellington laced with poisonous fungi to her estranged husband’s parents, aunt and uncle during a lunch at her home in 2023, killing three of them. But local media, including national broadcaster ABC and the Sydney Morning Herald, reported Monday night that Patterson’s bid to appeal her guilty verdicts had been lodged and accepted by the Court of Appeal. Her legal team has not outlined the reasons for the appeal. Patterson was sentenced in September and a judge said she would be eligible for parole after 33 years. Her legal team had argued she should be given the chance of release after 30 years because the notoriety of her case would have meant she would spend most of her prison sentence in isolation. The prosecution has since appealed the “manifestly inadequate” sentence. Throughout a trial lasting more than two months, Patterson maintained the beef-and-pastry dish was accidentally poisoned with death cap mushrooms -- the world’s most lethal fungus. But a 12-person jury found Patterson guilty in July of murdering her husband Simon’s parents, Don and Gail Patterson, as well as his aunt Heather Wilkinson, at her home in Leongatha, in the state of Victoria. She was also found guilty of attempting to murder Ian, Heather’s husband. Simon had also been invited to the fateful lunch but pulled out on the eve of the meal, texting his estranged wife that he felt “uncomfortable” attending. At the time, their relationship had turned sour. The pair -- still legally married -- were fighting over Simon’s child support contributions. Friends and family of the victims told a court in August of the devastating impact of the crime. Survivor Ian Wilkinson said at the time that he felt only “half alive” without his wife. “The silence in our home is a daily reminder,” he said. “I continue to carry a heavy burden of grief over her untimely death.” Death caps are easily mistaken for other edible varieties and reportedly possess a sweet taste that belies their potent toxicity.
