SA murder accused in hospital

A man charged with the murder of his wheelchair-bound wife has missed a scheduled court appearance after being admitted to hospital.

Adelaide Magistrates Court was told on Thursday that Peter Rex Dansie is expected to remain in hospital for at least a few days.

His non-appearance was excused with his case to return to court in March.

Dansie, 68, was arrested in July last year, nearly three months after his wife Helen drowned when her wheelchair rolled into a pond in the Adelaide parklands.

At his next appearance, Dansie will seek to examine some of the evidence against him.

At an earlier bail hearing, prosecutor Sarah Attar alleged the death of 67-year-old Ms Dansie was a planned and premeditated crime.

She said investigations by police had discounted much of what the dead woman's husband had told emergency services, including her being too heavy for him to turn over in the water and that the water was "up to his neck".

Ms Attar said police had re-enacted the incident and found it would have been easy to flip the woman over.

Checks also revealed the pond was only 1.1m deep.

A magistrate initially refused bail but the decision was overturned in the Supreme Court and Dansie was released on strict home detention conditions, including electronic monitoring.