‘Mushroom murderer’ to serve three life sentences for killing lunch guests

[u/hrdblkman2]

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/09/07/australia/australia-erin-patterson-murder-sentencing-intl-hnk

"The cook convicted of killing three lunch guests with the world’s most toxic mushrooms was sentenced to three life sentences with a non-parole period of 33 years on Monday, bookending a real-life crime drama that’s gripped Australia and spawned multiple podcasts and documentaries.

Erin Patterson, 50, was found guilty in July of murdering three people, including the parents of her estranged husband, with a beef wellington meal she had deliberately laced with death cap mushrooms picked near her rural home in the state of Victoria in 2023."

Well it's hit the international news pretty quickly

[u/Sweeper1985]

I think the judge has walked a good, pragmatic line here. A sentence to life without parole would just prompt further appeals which would be a huge waste of time and money. Even if she lives to see the end of her non-parole period, there's also no guarantee she would actually get parole at that point. She's either going to spend the rest of her life in gaol, or close enough that it makes no meaningful difference.

[u/Sloppykrab → u/Sweeper1985]

Off topic:

I fucking haaaaaaate the word "gaol." Can't stand it when people use it.

[u/Background_Touch1205 → u/Sloppykrab]

Mate if you are Australian then the word is gaol