An RUC officer walked free from Belfast Crown Court after being convicted last year of a a series of assaults on his wife over many years.
Judge James Brady suspended Const Ian Montgomery's two year jail sentence for two years after hearing that, on the recommendation of the social services department, he had been sole carer and provider for the children since 1997.
Montgomery, whose address was given as c/o Musgrave Street RUC station, Belfast, was convicted by a Crown Court jury in October, 2000, of nine charges of wounding and assault causing actual bodily harm between 1981 and 1998.
During the hearing his former wife claimed he had subjected her to 18 years of violence, verbal abuse and mental torture.
Mrs Karen Montgomery told the jury that on Christmas Day, 1993, he had split her head open with a whiskey bottle.
And in another of the many attacks her right eyelid needed four stitches after he caught it with his ring while hitting her.
The woman, herself a former police officer, denied defence suggestions that the injuries she had suffered had occurred when she had fallen drunk and hurt herself.
In passing sentence, Judge Brady commented that both husband and wife had been heavy drinkers which no doubt contributed to the domestic violence.
"You are a serving officer in the police and it may be you will lose your employment and your pension rights, but these are serious offences which call for a custodial sentence."
However, the children had been taken into care because of their mother's alcoholism, and the social services department had recommended in 1997 that Montgomery should be the carer.