CONSTABLE John Torney (40), the RUC man accused of murdering his wife, daughter and son, has professed his innocence at Belfast Crown Court.
His lawyer said the constable wanted to keep the "promise" he had made to other police "to swear on the Bible" he was not a killer. Asked by Mr Andrew Donaldson QC if he had murdered his 33 year old wife, Linda, he said "Definitely not."
He repeated this twice when asked if he had killed his 10 year old daughter, Emma, and 13 year old son, John Jr, at their Lomond Heights home at Cookstown, Co Tyrone, on September 19th, 1994.
Constable Torney, who said home life was often strained and his sex life had "become rather cool", rejected prosecution claims he was having a secret affair with a colleague, Constable Ailsa Millar. He told the jury the suggestion was "totally incorrect" and that any allegation he planned to set up home with her in Ballymena was "ridiculous".
Constable Torney described Ms Millar as a confidante who was "very easy to talk to" and kept telling him to make up with his wife.
During his evidence, Constable Torney, an RUC man of 16 years, said he could remember little of the events surrounding the shooting, except that he was sleeping with his wife when he was awakened by a loud bang and found his son in the bedroom.
Under cross examination, Constable Torney maintained that although he was having problems with his marriage and told others of them, including that it was over, at all times he had been working hard to save it.
He said only days before the shooting he and Linda had experienced a "second honeymoon in their marriage. "We had been working at it, and it came through," he said.
Pressed by Mr John Creaney, prosecuting, as to what he had actually done to save his marriage, Constable Torney kept repeating "We worked at the marriage.
The trial continues today.