Prosecutors have dropped some of the charges against an Australian woman accused of killing three relatives and seriously injuring another with a toxic mushroom lunch.
Erin Patterson will not face trial over allegations she also attempted to murder her husband, after those charges were withdrawn.
She still faces four charges: three counts of murder and one of attempted murder.
The 50-year-old has always maintained her innocence and has pled not guilty, with her trial to begin in the Supreme Court of Victoria on Wednesday.
Three people died in the hospital days after the July 2023 lunch, including Patterson’s former in-laws, Don Patterson, 70, Gail Patterson, 70, and Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson, 66.
Heather’s husband, 68-year-old Baptist pastor Ian Wilkinson, survived after weeks of treatment in the hospital.
The jury has been picked and is receiving instructions from the judge ahead of opening statements, which are expected on Wednesday.
