DALLAS -- An accountant was found guilty of capital murder Wednesday for shooting to death his two young daughters while his ex-wife listened helplessly on the telephone.

The jury took 19 minutes to convict John Battaglia, 46, in the slayings last May of 9-year-old Faith and 6-year-old Liberty.

He could get life in prison or the death penalty.

His lawyers rested their case Tuesday without calling any witnesses and said they planned to focus on saving his life.

Defense attorney Paul Johnson said he plans to call witnesses, including psychiatric experts during the trial's penalty phase, which began with jurors hearing testimony Wednesday.

The girls' mother, Mary Jean Pearle, testified during the trial that she heard her 9-year-old daughter say over the phone, "No Daddy, please, no don't do it," then heard five gunshots and her ex-husband yelling profanities.

Pearle called police, who found the girls' bodies in his apartment, along with a stockpile of guns.

Battaglia was arrested blocks from his home hours later after getting a tattoo on his arm of two flowers representing his daughters.

At the time of the shootings, authorities were about to ask a judge to revoke Battaglia's two-year probation for allegedly violating its terms by contacting his ex-wife. Battaglia was previously convicted of assaulting two ex-wives.

Pearle testified that while she was on the phone with her ex-husband, Battaglia had the 9-year-old ask her: "Mommy, why do you want Daddy to have to go to jail?"

In closing arguments, prosecutors called the crime an act of vengeance against Battaglia's ex-wife.

"The one way that John Battaglia could punish Mary Jean for the rest of her life was to take the two things that were most important to her and execute them all the while she was listening," prosecutor Keith Robinson said.

During the penalty phase, Michelle Ghetti, who was married to Battaglia from 1985 to 1987, testified that he regularly beat, harassed and stalked her.

Ghetti said Battaglia once beat her unconscious after telling her, "If I'm going back to jail, I'm going to make it well worth my while."