A civil servant in the Department of Justice has gone on trial at the Central Criminal Court for the murder of her husband at their Dublin home in 2002.
Mother of two Mrs Dolores O'Neill (50) pleads not guilty to the murder of Mr Declan O'Neill (46) at Coolamber Park, Knocklyon, Templelogue, Dublin 16 on or about 22 July 2002.
Medical evidence would show that Mr O'Neill suffered "repeated blows to the head" and died from a fractured skull.
The court heard that at the time of the killing, the accused was working for the Equality Authority at the Department of Equality Justice and Law Reform. The deceased was a salesman with a construction plant company.
In other evidence, the jury heard that when gardai arrived at Coolamber Park at around 1.50 a.m. that morning they found the body of the deceased in the front bedroom "partially wrapped in a duvet". There was heavy blood staining on the mattress, the floor and the headboard.
Garda Tim McCarthy told the court that gardai located a blood-stained knife under a pillow and they also found a hammer in the bedroom.
The trial before Mr Justice O'Higgins and a jury of nine women and three men continues tomorrow.