Standing outside court, Neil O'Riordan is relaxed and reflective.
Relieved? "In some ways, yes." Happy there were no adverse findings against you? "I'm pretty happy with that."
But - as the 63-year-old told Chief Coroner Glenn Theakston a few minutes before - he always expected to go through a legal process.
When he decided to help his wife, Penelope Ann Blume, end her life, the fact he could face jail had little bearing.
"The legal process for Penelope and I was never really a major consideration," Mr O'Riordan said.
"The principle thing for me is the loss of Penelope.
"My assistance and support was always going to be a given although I only supported the decision if it was made and actioned in the best possible headspace."
On Tuesday, Mr Theakston found Ms Blume died by suicide, and Mr O'Riordan helped her prepare for it.
In their 35 years together, the couple led a full, privileged life, Mr O'Riordan said. They traveled a lot and enjoyed nice food and good company: "Without her, I doubt I would know what a 1200 plus thread count was, nor would I know the pleasure of a good aged caramelised balsamic vinegar," he told the court.
When Ms Blume was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2016, she decided she didn't want to live if she became incapacitated.
Both she and her husband had years of nursing experience and they weren't naive to the effects of the debilitating disease, Mr O'Riordan told the court.
It progressed rapidly and, on May 14, 2019, Ms Blume was barely able to move and struggling to breathe when she decided it was time to end her life.
Her friends and family knew about her choice, as did her GP. She visited places of childhood memories and relatives' graves the weekend before.
Mr O'Riordan bought champagne and he and Ms Blume had a special dinner together. They listened to music and reminisced, and about 2am on March 15, Ms Blume passed away in her husband's arms.
Mr O'Riordan was charged with aiding and abetting a suicide soon after; but it wasn't his arrest that made the devastating loss of his wife more painful.
Instead, it was the fact he couldn't go back into their Pearce house and say goodbye to his wife before being taken to Woden Police Station.
"I did not have an opportunity to spend time with family and friends nor did they have an opportunity to say farewell to Penelope," he told the court.
"I compare this with the death of my mother who died at home surrounded by her friends and family in the early hours of the morning.
"We then had the opportunity to be with her for the rest of the day, to wash and dress her, and to say our goodbyes before the funeral directors came to out home in the late afternoon.
"The comparison between my experience of two profound losses in my life and the 12 hours following both deaths could not be more stark."
Mr O'Riordan had the criminal charge hanging over him for three months before ACT Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold decided to abandon the case.
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Mr Theakston said there should be no impediment to families and friends to spending time with a loved one who has passed away. The Coroners Act 1997 made this an express right, he said in his findings.
"Perhaps families and friends are unaware of their rights in this matter.
"I have asked police in the coroners team and staff working at the court to improve processes in this regard."
Mr O'Riordan said while police had to rule out the possibility something sinister had happened, and none of what happened after Ms Blume's death was "unexpected", it was still sad and disappointing.
He wanted the ACT community to debate voluntary assisted dying, and pursue legislative changes if the conversation called for it.
He acknowledged the difficulty with having to surpass federal law, but people voicing their views was the first step to getting change.
"With other states debating or implementing new laws on this issue, the time is now for the ACT to act," Mr O'Riordan told the court.
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