Erin Patterson was arrested and charged with murder on 2 November 2023. Photo: Screenshot / ABC
Accused killer Erin Patterson has formally pleaded not guilty to murder over the alleged mushroom poisonings of three of her relatives, and has elected to have her case "fast-tracked" to a Victorian Supreme Court trial.
Patterson was charged with murder after the deaths of three guests who ate a beef Wellington at her home in the Victorian town of Leongatha, south-east of Melbourne, last year.
In the Latrobe Valley Magistrates Court on Tuesday morning, Patterson entered not guilty pleas to three counts of murder and five counts of attempted murder.
Patterson, who appeared from prison via video link, was asked by Magistrate Tim Walsh to declare whether she was guilty or not guilty to each of the charges.
"Not guilty your honour," she said.
At the end of the hearing, Magistrate Tim Walsh said there was "an extremely voluminous" brief of evidence that had been compiled by police.
"It's not the sort of matter that can just be passed to another barrister on a few weeks' notice," he said.
The case was adjourned to a directions hearing in the Supreme Court in Melbourne on May 23.
Decision to fast-track trial will cut down court wait time
Patterson's decision was a shift in her legal strategy, after her defence lawyers previously indicated they wanted a committal hearing to take place in Morwell, which would not have taken place until 2025.
Defence barrister Colin Mandy SC did not indicate what had prompted the change of position.
Patterson's decision will save a significant amount of court time because a committal hearing - where police evidence is formally tested before a trial - will not take place.
The schedule of the upcoming jury trial will be determined by the Supreme Court.
Once assigned to the court, it often takes between six and 18 months before the trial takes place.
The case, which has garnered worldwide attention, centres on the lunch attended by Patterson's in-laws Don and Gail Patterson, along with Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson and Heather's husband Ian Wilkinson.
The four fell gravely ill after attending the lunch, Wilkinson the only guest to survive what police allege was an alleged mushroom poisoning carried out by Patterson.
Patterson protested her innocence, saying she never intended to harm anyone and was "devastated" by the deaths of her relatives.
Homicide detectives also charged Patterson with five counts of attempted murder.
They allege Wilkinson and Patterson's estranged husband Simon, who was not at the lunch, was an intended target.
Police also allege Patterson attempted to murder Simon Patterson in November 2021, May 2022 and September 2022.
- ABC