On Monday, a woman accused of serving her ex-husband's parents and aunt poisonous mushrooms with lunch appeared in an Australian court charged with three counts of murder and five counts of attempted murder.
Erin Patterson, 49, made a brief video appearance in the Latrobe Valley Magistrates Court from a Melbourne prison where she has been held since she was arrested in November last year.
Judge Tim Walsh said he would announce on May 7 about Patterson's committal hearing in the same court in Morwell or Melbourne.
At committal hearings, prosecutors decide if they have enough evidence to present charges to a jury in a trial held in the Victorian Supreme Court.
It was Patterson's second court appearance on the charges. She has not yet entered a plea or requested to be released on bond.
Patterson is charged with the murders of Gail Patterson's sister, Heather Wilkinson, 66, and her former in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson, both 70. All three of them passed away in a hospital days after eating lunch at Patterson's house in July last year.
She is also charged with trying to kill her ex-husband, Simon Patterson, during the meal as well as three other times dating back to 2021. Simon declined the invitation to have lunch.
Furthermore, she is also accused of attempting to kill Ian Wilkinson, the 68-year-old husband of Wilkinson.
Ian was admitted to the hospital for seven weeks after the lunch. The police reported that the four ill family members' symptoms showed poisoning with wild Amanita phalloides, also referred to as death cap mushrooms.
In Victoria, the maximum sentence for murder is life imprisonment, and the maximum term for attempted murder is 25 years in prison.
Her lawyer, Colin Mandy, said his client preferred the committal hearing in Morwell, even if it meant waiting until next year.
Mandy expressed her desire for the hearing to happen near her house. Defense attorneys have provided prosecutors with a list of expected witnesses for the committal.
He said that he expected a three-week hearing.
