A man accused of bludgeoning his estranged wife to death with a 1.8kg sledgehammer, leaving her to die in a pool of her own blood as he went off drinking, has pleaded not guilty to her murder.
Shaun Robert Sturgess is on trial at Brisbane Supreme Court charged with the murder of his estranged wife Jacqueline Sturgess at Narangba in April 2020.
Police discovered Ms Sturgess’ bloodied body during a welfare check at their family home north of Brisbane on April 28 that year.
On the first day of his trial on Monday, Mr Sturgess formally pleaded not guilty to a single charge of murder when arraigned before Supreme Court Justice Tom Sullivan.
He instead pleaded to an alternative charge of manslaughter, but this was rejected by the Crown.
It will be alleged Mr Sturgess fatally struck his ex-wife on the back of her skull and left her for 24 hours to get drunk.
Crown prosecutor Chris Cook is due to make his opening statement shortly.
More to come