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One of Australia’s most high-profile homicide cases has returned to the courtroom this week, as two separate appeals over the conviction and sentencing of Erin Patterson, the woman convicted of poisoning three family members with toxic death cap mushrooms, are heard by Victoria’s Court of Appeal. The 51-year-old appeared before the court via video link from her prison cell, as both state prosecutors and her own legal team pushed for competing outcomes that could reshape her lifetime behind bars.

In 2023, Patterson hosted a family lunch at her regional Victoria home, where she served a beef Wellington laced with deadly foraged death cap mushrooms. Three of her guests – her in-laws Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, and Gail’s 66-year-old sister Heather Wilkinson – died days later after suffering acute poisoning. The fourth guest, Heather’s husband Ian Wilkinson, survived the attack but has never regained full health after the ordeal.

Patterson was found guilty of three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder late last year, and sentenced to life in prison with a minimum non-parole period of 33 years, meaning she could apply for release once that term is served. Now, Crown prosecutors have launched an appeal against that sentence, arguing it is “manifestly inadequate” and that Patterson’s crimes are so severe she should never be granted an opportunity to leave prison.

In court on Thursday, prosecutor Brendan Kissane laid out the extreme gravity of the offenses, describing the killings as “truly dreadful” acts of calculated betrayal. Prosecutors told the court the murders were the end result of a months-long plot Patterson orchestrated: she sourced and prepared a lethal quantity of death cap mushrooms, invited trusted family members who had supported her and her children for years to the lunch, and constructed an elaborate cover story to conceal her plans before the attack.

Worse, prosecutors argued, Patterson sat idle as her guests ate the toxic meal, even joining in small talk before the gathering ended with a prayer for her, after she falsely claimed she had been diagnosed with cancer. As victims fell critically ill in the days after the lunch, Patterson never admitted to serving foraged poisonous mushrooms, instead maintaining her lies to police, medical workers, and investigators even after multiple guests were placed on life support.

When handing down the original sentence in September last year, Justice Christopher Beale ruled that Patterson would be eligible for parole after 33 years, noting that he was granting a small possibility of release solely due to the “harsh” conditions of her imprisonment. Beale explained that for her own safety, Patterson would likely spend years in solitary confinement, a reality that justified leaving open a glimmer of eventual release.

But prosecutors pushed back against that reasoning this week, arguing that the judge had overstated the severity of Patterson’s long-term prison conditions. They noted that Patterson already has access to a range of prison activities, including time in an exercise yard and opportunities to pursue hobbies such as crocheting, and that conditions will likely improve as her notoriety fades over time. Court reporters noted that Patterson closed her eyes and shook her head as Kissane outlined these prison privileges in court.

Prosecutors argued that the original 33-year minimum term, just three years above the statutory 30-year minimum for the offenses, “utterly fails to reflect the gravity of the offending or vindicate the dignity of each of the four victims.” If the Court of Appeal declines to order a full life sentence with no chance of parole, they said, the court should at minimum extend the non-parole period to properly reflect the harm of the crimes.

Alongside the prosecution’s sentence appeal, the court is also hearing a separate challenge from Patterson’s legal team, who are asking to have her convictions entirely overturned. Patterson’s lawyers argue that her 2024 trial was compromised by a “catastrophic” procedural error: the jury was housed at the same hotel as the prosecution team and a key prosecution witness, creating an unacceptable risk of improper contact that undermined the fairness of the trial. They also claim that some evidence presented during the trial was overly speculative and should never have been put before the jury, amounting to a miscarriage of justice.

After both sides completed their arguments this week, the three appeal judges announced they would reserve their decisions on both appeals. A final ruling is not expected for several weeks or months, leaving the final outcome of the high-profile case uncertain for the time being.

One of Australia’s most sensational true crime cases, the so-called “mushroom murders,” has returned to the courts this week, as state prosecutors have formally called for convicted triple killer Erin Patterson to spend the rest of her life behind bars with no chance of parole, rejecting the original 33-year non-parole period set by her trial judge.

The 51-year-old was found guilty by a jury in July 2024 of poisoning three members of her husband’s family with lethal death cap mushrooms, which she hid inside a homemade beef Wellington served at a 2023 lunch gathering at her home in the rural Victorian farming village of Leongatha. The victims were her husband Simon’s parents, Don and Gail Patterson, and his 66-year-old aunt, Heather Wilkinson. Patterson was also convicted of attempted murder for the attack on Heather’s husband Ian, a small-town local pastor who spent weeks in intensive care after the meal before making a full recovery.

After the conviction, the trial judge handed down a life sentence but ruled Patterson would become eligible for parole after 33 years behind bars, when she would be 83 years old. The original sentencing took into account claims that the high notoriety of the case would likely force prison authorities to hold Patterson in isolated conditions for most of her incarceration.

But in closing arguments for a two-day appeal hearing at Melbourne’s Court of Appeal Thursday, Director of Public Prosecutions Brendan Kissane pushed back hard against the original non-parole ruling, arguing it does not match the gravity of Patterson’s crimes. Kissane told the panel of appeal judges that the 33-year non-parole period is “manifestly inadequate” given the nature of the offences, which he described as premised on shocking betrayal and qualifying as the worst category of criminal offending.

“Indeed, our submission is that for this offending the respondent should be sentenced to life without parole,” Kissane said. “We of course know it’s a harsh submission to make, but we submit it is demanded by the nature of the offending in this case.” Prosecutors also rejected the core justification for the original parole ruling, telling judges there is no concrete evidence to confirm Patterson will be held in long-term isolation for “many years to come.”

The appeal hearing comes as Patterson’s own legal team is seeking to have her entire triple murder conviction thrown out entirely. Appearing via live video link from Melbourne’s maximum-security Dame Phyllis Frost Centre on Wednesday, Patterson’s lawyers argued their client suffered a “substantial” miscarriage of justice during her original trial, citing a long list of alleged procedural irregularities and improper use of evidence to secure the guilty verdict. A court sketch from the hearing showed Patterson watching proceedings remotely, and Australian national broadcaster ABC reported she could be seen shaking her head and closing her eyes as Kissane delivered the prosecution’s arguments Thursday.

The “mushroom murders” case sparked an unprecedented global media frenzy when it went to trial last year, drawing true crime podcasters, documentary film crews, and curious curious from across the country to the small rural courthouse in Morwell, Victoria — a quiet town best known for its annual award-winning rose festival. Audiences across the world, from New York to New Delhi, followed every twist of the proceedings, and the case still retains huge public interest for one key unconfirmed detail: the prosecution has never outlined a clear confirmed motive for the killings.

After two days of legal argument from both sides, the Court of Appeal judges announced they will reserve their decision on both the appeal against conviction and the prosecution’s push for a full life sentence, releasing their ruling at a later, unspecified date.

As record-breaking heat waves sweep across Southern Europe each summer, throngs of visitors to Rome have found a creative escape from scorching temperatures: floating down the city’s iconic Tiber River on inflatable rafts. Far from the crowded queues of the Colosseum and overpriced street-side gelato stands, this off-the-beaten-path activity has emerged as a hit for travelers tired of the standard Roman sightseeing circuit.

Organized under operators like Roma Rafting, the two-hour excursion launches from the waterfront near the centuries-old Piazza del Popolo, carrying groups along a water route that has shaped Rome’s history for millennia. As rafts drift gently downstream, passengers glide past some of the capital’s most famous landmarks, all seen from a one-of-a-kind vantage point. The massive stone silhouette of Castel Sant’angelo, built as a burial tomb for Emperor Hadrian, rises on the riverbank, while the iconic dome of St. Peter’s Basilica peeks over the horizon visible from the water.

When the trip nears its end, rafts dock at a historic ancient Roman port in the beloved Trastevere neighborhood, an area whose name translates directly to “across the Tiber” – a nod to the river that has long divided and defined the city’s districts. Along the route, rafters pass through gentle rapids near the charming Tiber Island, where mild currents send refreshing splashes over the edges of rafts, cooling down overheated travelers as they glide under some of Rome’s oldest stone bridges.

For many tourists, the draw of the activity is as much about the new perspective as it is about escaping the heat. “It’s really nice to get a different view of Rome. It’s something special compared with what you can see on foot,” explained 19-year-old German visitor Manuel Frank during a recent excursion.

Fifty-year-old Belgian tourist Sabine Maisano, who joined the trip with her entire family, echoed that sentiment. After spending full days trekking kilometers through Rome’s crowded streets and archaeological sites, the slower pace of rafting offered a much-needed break. “After a day of walking for kilometres, being able to sit down in a boat… even though you have to paddle a little, that allows us to relax, stay cool and discover the city at a more relaxed pace,” she said.

Giuseppe Battaglia, a 37-year-old guide with Roma Rafting, notes that the 40-euro (roughly $46.7 USD) tour follows a path deeply rooted in Roman history. The route mirrors much of the waterway that ancient Romans traveled centuries before they launched their military conquests across the Mediterranean, he explained. For more than two thousand years, the Tiber – Italy’s third-longest river – served as the beating heart of the city, providing fresh water, food, and a critical trade route for generations of inhabitants.

“We’re always used to thinking about roads, cars and motorbikes, but Rome also gives us the chance to take a tour along the river,” Battaglia said. For modern visitors seeking both cooling relief and a fresh take on the ancient Eternal City, that chance has quickly become one of Rome’s most popular summer activities.