Mushroom chef Erin Patterson's bid for freedom edges closer as court sets date for triple killer's appeal and lawyers reveal their case

By KYLIE STEVENS, SENIOR BREAKING NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA and PAUL SHAPIRO, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 08:34, 29 May 2026 | Updated: 08:45, 29 May 2026 Triple killer Erin Patterson will learn her fate within months after launching an appeal against her murder convictions.  The Supreme Court of Victoria on Friday confirmed that a date for the appeal hearing had been scheduled to be held over two days on August 19 and 20.  Patterson, 51, who remains behind bars at Melbourne's notorious Dame Phyllis Frost Centre, is not expected to face court in person. The mother-of-two is serving a life sentence with a minimum 33-year non-parole period over the deaths of three family members who consumed death cap mushrooms served in beef Wellingtons at her Leongatha home in Victoria's Gippsland region in July 2023. She was found guilty of the murders of her in-laws Don and Gail Patterson, as well as Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson. Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson, survived after being critically ill. Patterson was also convicted of his attempted murder. Patterson avoided life without the possibility of parole after her then-barrister Colin Mandy SC argued his client would endure harsher conditions while behind bars. Last November, Patterson lodged plans to appeal her conviction on seven grounds, including what she claimed was a 'substantial miscarriage of justice' during the marathon 11-week trial. Triple killer Erin Patterson's appeal against her murder convictions will be held in August  Patterson's in-laws Don and Gail Patterson died after consuming death cap mushrooms served in beef Wellingtons at her Leongatha home Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson also died following the lunch. Her husband, Pastor Ian Wilkinson survived Patterson's defence claimed that the jury stayed in the same hotel as members of the police and media during the trial, arguing this has 'fatally undermined the integrity of the verdict'. She also claimed that the prosecutor's cross-examination of her in the witness box over five days was 'unfair and oppressive'. Patterson also argued that parts of the evidence, including Facebook messages in a true crime group, created unfair prejudice and should not have been allowed to be put to the jury. Patterson has always maintained her innocence.  She has called for the convictions to be quashed and a new trial to be held. The Director of Public Prosecutions will also appeal the length of Patterson's sentence at the same upcoming hearing, arguing it was 'manifestly inadequate.' They want a full life sentence without any possibility of release. It comes after Daily Mail revealed earlier this month that Patterson is no longer in solitary confinement in jail and was recently released into the wider prison population.  The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.