Dublin civil servant Dolores O'Neill has been found guilty of the manslaughter of husband Declan O'Neill in a south Dublin suburb over two years ago.
After just over five hours of deliberation, the jury reached a majority verdict of 10 to two finding Mrs O'Neill (50) not guilty of murder, but guilty of manslaughter, in accordance with her plea.
Ms O'Neill had denied murdering her 46-year-old husband, Declan O'Neill, on or about July 22, 2002, at the family home in Coolamber Park, Knocklyon in Dublin.
Members of the deceased's family wept out-loud as the verdict was read out, and Mr Justice Paul Carney took the unusual step of inviting Mr O'Neill's brother, Brian, to tell the court the effect the death had on them.
"We have lost a member of our family, who we deeply loved, and whose character this court is not aware of. What we heard in court was not our brother."
As his siblings wept, Mr O'Neill went on to tell the court how some of them had lost their jobs because they could not cope.
He also drew from the evidence of the former State Pathologist. During the trial, Prof John Harbison declared that the deceased had been a healthy man. This, Mr O'Neill said, was evidence that his brother was not a heavy drinker.
During the six-day trial, Prof John Harbison testified that Declan O'Neill died as a result of multiple blows to the head, having detected at least 24 marks from a blunt instrument to that area. These injuries, thought to be from a hammer, resulted in death.
Mr O'Neill had also received more than 20 knife wounds to the neck, and the jury saw a bloodstained hammer, found after the killing on the bed beside the deceased.
In her evidence, Mrs O'Neill spoke of a painful marriage, with the first outburst of violence from the deceased two weeks before their wedding in 1978.
She recounted events of her late husband's drinking, frequently leaving the family short of cash for household expenses. The accused told the court about verbal as well as physical abuse, recalling one occasion when he told her, "I'm mixing with people now, who can make people disappear."
When asked why she had never secured a barring order, she said she knew it sounded stupid in hindsight, but the stigma attached had prevented her. "I wanted his best interests, wanted to help him. .. I still loved him. Declan knew I still had feelings for him and he toyed with them." she said.
The bitter row, which led to his death, followed a violent weekend away in Cork. The accused admitted that after breaking free from her husband's stranglehold, she pushed him to the bed and spotted a hammer on the floor.
She remembered hitting him with the hammer, but said she had no recollection of using a knife. "I just couldn't take anymore. I knew he was going to go for me." she told the court.
After she killed her husband, Mrs O'Neill drove herself and her two sons to her sister's
house in Ashford, Co Wicklow. Explaining why she made that decision instead of summoning help for her husband, she said, "I wish I had. I wish I had ... I didn't know what was happening. I was in such a state. I just wanted my kids to be safe ... my mind was in hell."
After Mr Brian O'Neill's tearful statement, Mr Justice Carney addressed the defence counsel's request for bail between now and sentencing. He turned down the request on two grounds, first that she would be hounded by the press, and second that it would send out the wrong signal considering, "she faces a substantial term in prison".
Dolores O'Neill was remanded in custody for sentence on Monday, November 1st. Before being led away, she embraced her two sons, Brian (24) and Conor (17), who sat behind her in court throughout the trial.