I killed him defending myself: Wife

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By ZEDAIAH KANAU
A WOMAN found guilty by a court of causing the death of her ex-husband has said, in mitigation, that her marriage was marked by violence which forced her to defend herself when he attacked her. Chief Justice Sir Gibbs Salika found Mari Dominic, of Tanipa village, Tapini in Central, guilty of manslaughter in the National Court in Waigani. She was represented by lawyer Agnes Peter from the Public Solicitor’s Office who recommended to Sir Gibbs to hand her a suspended sentence of five to six years as it was not a “worst case”.“The (ex-husband) was an alcoholic. He was also abusive. As a result of the continuous domestic violence and the personal abuse, she (Dominic) separated from him three years ago,” Peter said. Peter told the court that even though they were separated, the man continued to abuse Dominic. On Oct 24, 2019, at about 2am along the Hiritano Highway, he confronted Dominic again. She had to defend herself by stabbing him on the back. “The appropriate penalty for (her), given that the mitigating factor outweighs the aggravating factor, we submit that five to six years is an appropriate sentence and also, the time spent in custody, that is one year seven months, be deducted from that and for the sentence to be suspended,” Peter said. State Prosecutor Solomon Kuku from the Public Prosecutor’s Office called for a jail term of eight to 15 years because the aggravating factors outweigh the mitigating factors. Sir Gibbs will hand down the sentence on June 17. Dominic is currently remanded at Bomana Prison.