Earlier, the jury heard that is was never a case of "if'' a severely depressed woman, paranoid about her fading looks, would take her life, but "when".
The 68-year-old had made it plain numerous times that she did not want to live anymore and tried at least four times to kill herself. She had talked about suicide on a weekly basis since 1995, Crown prosecutor Grant Burston said in his closing address.
"By January 12 last year, Eva Palairet had had enough and her husband knew it.''
She had wanted to be in control of her own death and to effect it without agony. Mrs Palairet also dreaded her husband dying first and did not want to live without him.
Concerned about the way she looked as she aged, the once glamorous and sociable woman had become a heavy drinker and a recluse, not even wanting her own children and grandchildren to see her.
She was convinced she was old, ugly and fat. Despite her husband's continued efforts to make life more bearable for her, Mrs Palairet simply "wanted to be released from being judged (by other people),'' the prosecutor said.
The couple had watched a film which included a suicide and Mrs Palairet asked the accused to research effective methods on the internet and obtain equipment for her. Trying to be supportive, he did as she wished to ease her worries about the possibility of surviving him.
Mrs Palairet told her husband: "Now I don't have to worry. That is a weight off my mind.''
Details about the way she died have been suppressed.
Palairet found her unconscious when he returned home on April 9, 2010, from his 98-year-old father's funeral in Auckland.
She died three days later, after being taken off life support.
Said Mr Burston: "You can be sure that he (the accused) intended to help and encourage his wife to kill herself if she chose to do so.''
He stressed that "this is not a euthanasia case. Mrs Palairet did not have a terminal disease when she died. The issue raised by those cases is quite different from this one.''
Defence lawyer Mike Antunovic argued that his client's actions had been those of a devoted and loyal spouse.
"What he did was motivated by a determination to stop her from killing herself. He was not giving her anything (to assist suicide) that she did not already have in the house.''
Palairet had insisted to police that he had no interest in helping his wife in any way to kill herself.
He bought what she wanted because he believed it would give her peace of mind and she would not have to keep on looking for a way of committing suicide.
Mr Antunovic said Palairet was doing everything he could to keep his wife alive, "not to kill her.''
"This is a tragic case, there can be no doubt about that. Over 15 long years he supported Eva and that has taken a huge toll on his health as well.
"It was this man who stood beside her, who did everything he could to keep her going.''
The option chosen by the accused to help his beloved wife involved no criminal intent on his part, the lawyer told the jury of eight men and four women.
"He continued to do things to make life attractive to Eva, to instil in her a desire to carry on. He did not want her to die. This is clearly not a case of help or deliberate encouragement (to commit suicide).''
It had taken the police nearly a year to make up their mind whether to charge Palairet over his wife's death, said Mr Antunovic.
WHERE TO GET HELP
* If it's an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
* Call Youthline 0800 376 633 or text 234 or email talk@youthline.org.nz
* Call Lifeline 0800 543 354
* Call Depression Helpline 0800 111 757
* Call What's Up 0800 942 8787 (noon-midnight)
* Text The lowdown on 5626 or email team@thelowdown.co.nz
* Call Mental Health Services 0508 625 662
* Suicide Prevention Information New Zealand has more information. Visit: www.spinz.org.nz.
* The Ministry of Health also offers information at www.depression.org.nz.
