A Peachtree City man was convicted of 13 of the 15 criminal charges lodged against him in connection with an assault on his wife in their home Jan. 20.

Once the verdicts were read, Michael William Ellicott glanced in the audience briefly for a glimpse of his wife moments before he was taken back into custody.

Once he had left the courtroom, Pamela Ellicott melted into the arms of a friend as she mentally processed her victory.

Superior Court Judge Paschal A. English Jr. delayed sentencing until Monday morning at 10 a.m. Two of the counts carry a minimum sentence of life in prison.

Ellicott was found guilty of five counts of aggravated battery (family violence), four counts of aggravated assault (family violence), two counts of aggravated sodomy, one count of false imprisonment and one count of rape.

The verdict was read in court at 4:40 p.m.

Less than a half-hour before the verdict, the jury had reported they were deadlocked with a 11-1 vote on all but two charges. Judge English then read a charge to the jury urging them to reach a unanimous verdict.

Michael Ellicott testified Wednesday, denying that he ever struck or raped his wife. His testimony came after the jury was shown disturbing photos of his wife Pamela’s injuries. The photos were taken at the hospital where she was treated after police were called to their home Jan. 20.

Shown graphic images of deep bruises on various parts of Pamela Ellicott’s body, Michael Ellicott resolutely said that he did not cause any of them. He also contended that while he did not strike his wife with drumsticks as alleged, she was striking herself with the drumsticks during the incident.

Pamela Ellicott previously testified that her husband punched and kicked her on numerous occasions, but that the assault Jan. 20 in the soundproof theater room in their basement left her in fear for her life.

Pamela Ellicott said the beating was interrupted by a telephone call her husband took, and after he left the room she grabbed a cordless phone and went to a neighbor’s house for help. Michael Ellicott later testified that the phone call was from a co-worker whom he was having an extramarital affair with.

Pamela Ellicott also testified about several occasions when her husband forced her to participate in deviant sexual activity. She also said he was responsible for breaking both her wrists, one of which she recalled hearing crack as she deflected a blow he intended for her head during one assault.

Pamela Ellicott also said she still suffered from an injury to her buttocks which required surgery and makes it painful to walk.

Although the physical assaults from her husband began about a year and a half before the Jan. 20 incident, Mrs. Ellicott said she stayed with her husband and had not planned to divorce him because she still loved him.

“It wasn’t until the last year that I stayed out of fear,” Mrs. Ellicott said Tuesday.

Michael Ellicott testified that adultery on his part and on his wife’s part played a role in friction between the couple.

Michael Ellicott said several days before his arrest he had noticed red marks on his wife and encouraged her to see a psychiatrist who had previously helped her on the self-abuse matter.

A co-worker at Delta Airlines whom Michael Ellicott admitted to having an affair with testified that in December 2007 he had told her about Pamela Ellicott’s self-abuse problem.

Michael Ellicott admitted that he hoped to divorce his wife but prosecutor Warren Sellers reminded him that in his answer to Pamela Ellicott’s divorce suit he is asking for the marriage to remain intact.

“I still do love Pam. I understand the situation but I’m not happy with it,” Michael Ellicott said. “I don’t want to go to jail for 400 years sir. I thought she would come to her senses.”