An Australian court rejected Erin Patterson's appeal against her convictions for poisoning four people with mushrooms.

What it means

Erin Patterson, the Australian woman convicted of murdering three people and attempting to murder a fourth by feeding them death cap mushrooms, has had her appeal against those convictions rejected by the Supreme Court of Victoria. The court upheld her guilty verdicts, and reports indicate the ruling also led to a harsher sentence, likely confirming she will spend the rest of her life in prison. This decision effectively closes her main legal avenue for overturning the convictions.

Accuracy & sourcesGrounded

The claim that Patterson's appeal was rejected is solid, based on multiple reputable news outlets (The Guardian, The New York Times, 7NEWS) reporting directly on the Supreme Court ruling. The primary source is the Victorian Supreme Court judgment, though the full text has not been publicly released; reporting is consistent across outlets. The highlight's phrasing 'under appeal' may reflect coverage from before the decision, but the grounding clarifies the outcome.

How new

Genuinely new: the court decision was handed down on 29 October 2026, and this reporting is from that day.

Past coverage