Guilty verdict for killer bride

Roger Osliffe was stabbed to death after a row over flowers

A bride who stabbed her husband a week after their honeymoon cruise was found guilty of manslaughter on Tuesday.

Lecturer Catherine Osliffe, 34, was cleared by a jury of murdering her husband Roger on 6 June last year.

Preston Crown Court had heard the couple argued about who had sent her a bunch of flowers.

Osliffe, from Whalley, near Clitheroe, Lancashire, was said to have screamed at him: "We've only been together for a week and I hate you already."

'Stormy' relationship

As the verdict was read out, some members of the public gallery shouted "yes" while others wept and hugged one another.

Osliffe, a part-time tutor in social and life skills guidance at HMP Garth in Leyland, Preston, was sentenced to five years in prison.

The couple, who had a "stormy and volatile" relationship, got married on 30 April 2004.

The court heard that they went out every two weeks and got drunk before returning home where it would "start kicking off". They usually made up, but early on 6 June, Mr Osliffe was stabbed.

They had argued earlier in the evening after Mr Osliffe questioned whether a bunch of flowers his wife received was from her mother as she claimed.

I asked 'why have you stabbed yourself?' and he said 'I didn't'. Paramedic David Mansell

Michael Shorrock QC, prosecuting, said Mr Osliffe kicked the flowers onto his wife while she was in bed.

Neighbours were woken by screaming and Osliffe kicked the flowers downstairs before returning to the bedroom where the stabbing took place.

As Mr Osliffe, 35, bled to death following the stabbing, his wife waited 10 minutes before phoning an ambulance, it was alleged, and told paramedics he had stabbed himself.

Paramedic David Mansell attended the 999 call and travelled to hospital with Mr Osliffe.

In a statement read to the court last week, Mr Mansell said: "I asked 'why have you stabbed yourself?' and he said 'I didn't'.

"I said 'we were of the impression that you stabbed yourself. Who did stab you?'. "He said 'Cath's done it'."