Lawyers for a man accused of killing his wife by bashing her with a brick have told a court he caused her death but is not guilty of her murder.
Northern Territory man Baden Flash has pleaded not guilty to murdering his wife, Kwementyaye Foster, in the bedroom of their Tennant Creek home, on January 20, 2017.
Jurors in the trial before the Alice Springs Supreme Court on Wednesday heard Ms Foster died as the result of blunt force injuries to more than 30 locations on her body, including to her head, chest, abdomen and lower limbs.
Crown prosecutor Stephen Robson SC said Ms Foster suffered a "prolonged and severe bashing administered by the accused."
He said the central issue in the trial would be whether Mr Flash intended to either kill or seriously harm his wife, and was therefore criminally responsible for her death.
Mr Robson told the court that Mr Flash admitted to using a brick to hit Ms Foster several times in a police interview two days after her death, and that she "wouldn't get up" from the bed where she had fainted afterwards.
"He said he tried to stop the blood and when asked why he hit [her] with the brick, the accused said 'Drunk, I can't remember some of it,'" Mr Robson told the court on Wednesday.
The crown is alleging Mr Flash intended to kill his wife, but defence lawyer Tania Collins said she would be seeking conviction for the lesser charge of manslaughter.
She said Mr Flash "accepted that he caused his wife's death".
"It is understandable you will feel emotional about the events in the trial, but you must approach your task in a detached and impartial manner," Ms Collins told the jury.
"The principal issue for you to consider is what was the state of mind of Mr Baden Flash when he inflicted the fatal injuries on his wife."
Mr Robson told the jury that "self-induced intoxication is not a defence to murder" but his level of drunkenness could be relevant to the trial.
"Intoxication might lower a person's inhibitions, it might lead them to do things they wouldn't do if they were sober and intoxication can also fuel anger and lead a person to act more aggressively, forcefully than they might if they were sober," he said.
Mr Robson also said Mr Flash and Ms Foster's "dysfunctional" relationship, which was "marked by arguments and violence", would be important to the case.
The trial continues.
