An Australian woman on trial for triple murder testifies over mushroom poisoning
Erin Patterson, the woman accused of serving her ex-husband's family poisonous mushrooms, is photographed in Melbourne, Australia, on April 15, 2025. (James Ross/AAP Image via AP)
NEWCASTLE, Australia — The woman accused of murdering three members of her ex-husband's family by serving them poisonous mushrooms has taken the stand at an Australian court on Monday as the highly publicized triple murder trial nears its conclusion.
Erin Patterson, 50, is accused of killing her former parents-in-law, Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, and Gail Patterson's sister, Heather Wilkinson, 66, and also of attempting to murder Wilkinson's husband, Ian, 68 after the four consumed a meal at Patterson's home in Victoria state in July 2023.
She could face up to 25 years in prison for the attempted murder charge, while murder in the state of Victoria carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
Her lawyer, Colin Mandy, previously told the Victorian state Supreme Court during the six-week trial the poisoning was accidental.
Patterson's appearance as a defense witness Monday marked the first time the 50-year-old has spoken since pleading not guilty to all charges in May last year.
She served meals of beef Wellington, mashed potato and green beans at her home in the rural town of Leongartha on July 29, 2023. All four guests were hospitalized the next day with poisoning from death cap mushrooms, also known as amanita phalloides, that were added to the beef and pastry dish. Ian Wilkinson survived after a liver transplant.
Under questioning from Mandy, Patterson revealed personal battles with low self-esteem, shifting spirituality, the complicated birth of her son and growing distance from her estranged husband's family in recent years.
'I had felt for some months that my relationship with the wider Patterson family, and particularly Don and Gail, perhaps had a bit more distance or space put between us,' Patterson said. 'We saw each other less.'
Patterson is due back on the witness stand Tuesday as the trial continues.
The prosecution completed the presentation of its evidence to a jury of 14 people earlier on Monday afternoon.
Keiran Smith, The Associated Press
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Published Jun 04, 2025 • 3 minute read Erin Patterson, the woman accused of serving her ex-husband's family poisonous mushrooms, is photographed in Melbourne, Australia, on April 15, 2025. Photo by James Ross / AP WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Before Erin Patterson's in-laws and their relatives arrived at her home for lunch, she bought pricey ingredients, consulted friends about recipes and sent her children out to a movie. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Then, the Australian woman served them a dish containing poisonous death cap mushrooms — a meal that was fatal for three of her four guests. Whether that was Patterson's plan is at the heart of a triple murder trial that has gripped Australia for nearly six weeks. Prosecutors in the Supreme Court case in the state of Victoria say the accused lured her guests to lunch with a lie about having cancer, before deliberately feeding them toxic fungi. But her lawyers say the tainted beef Wellington she served was a tragic accident caused by a mushroom storage mishap. She denies murdering her estranged husband's parents, Don and Gail Patterson, and their relative, Heather Wilkinson. The mother of two also denies attempting to murder Heather's husband Ian Wilkinson, who survived the meal. In a rare step for a defendant charged with murder, Patterson chose to speak in her own defense at her trial this week. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. On Wednesday, she spoke publicly for the first time about the fateful lunch in July 2023 and offered her explanations on how she planned the meal and didn't become sick herself. Adding more mushrooms to a 'bland' meal No one disputes that Patterson, 50, served death cap mushrooms to her guests for lunch in the rural town of Leongatha, but she says she did it unknowingly. Patterson said Wednesday she splurged on expensive ingredients and researched ideas to find 'something special' to serve. She deviated from her chosen recipe to improve the 'bland' flavor, she said. She believed she was adding dried fungi bought from an Asian supermarket from a container in her pantry, she told the court. 'Now I think that there was a possibility that there were foraged ones in there as well,' she told her lawyer, Colin Mandy. Patterson had foraged wild mushrooms for years, she told the court Tuesday, and had put some in her pantry weeks before the deaths. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The accused says she 'shouldn't have lied' about cancer Patterson, who formally separated from her husband Simon Patterson in 2015, said she felt 'hurt' when Simon told her the night before the lunch that he 'wasn't comfortable' attending. She earlier told his relatives that she'd arranged the meal to discuss her health. Patterson admitted this week that she never had cancer — but after a health scare, she told her in-laws she did. In reality, Patterson said she intended to have weight loss surgery. But she was too embarrassed to tell anybody and planned to pretend to her in-laws that she was undergoing cancer treatment instead, she said. 'I was ashamed of the fact that I didn't have control over my body or what I ate,' a tearful Patterson said Wednesday. 'I didn't want to tell anybody, but I shouldn't have lied to them.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Patterson says she threw up her mushroom meal The accused said she believes she was spared the worst effects of the poisoned meal because she self-induced vomiting shortly after her lunch guests left. She had binged on most of a cake and then made herself throw up — a problem she said she had struggled with for decades. Patterson also said she believes she had eaten enough of the meal to cause her subsequent diarrhea. She then sought hospital treatment but unlike her lunch guests, she quickly recovered. At the hospital where her guests' health was deteriorating, her estranged husband asked her about the dehydrator she used to dry her foraged mushrooms, she said. 'Is that how you poisoned my parents?' she said Simon Patterson asked her. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Growing afraid she would be blamed for the poisoning and that her children would be taken from her, Patterson said she later disposed of her dehydrator. She told investigators she'd never owned one and hadn't foraged for mushrooms before. While still at the hospital, she insisted she'd bought all the mushrooms at stores even though she said she knew it was possible that foraged mushrooms had accidentally found their way into the meal. She was too frightened to tell anyone, Patterson said. Also later, Patterson said she remotely wiped her cell phone while it sat in an evidence locker to remove pictures of mushrooms she'd foraged. Prosecutors argued in opening their case in April that she poisoned her husband's family on purpose, although they didn't suggest a motive. She carefully avoided poisoning herself and faked being ill, they said. The trial continues on Thursday with Patterson's cross-examination by the prosecutors. If convicted, she faces life in prison for murder and 25 years for attempted murder. Columnists Sunshine Girls Crime Sunshine Girls Other Sports
