Charges have been dismissed against a woman accused of poisoning her husband in 2007.

Stephanie Bernice Stowers, 47, who now goes by her maiden name Brooks, was told Wednesday she will no longer face trial for crimes related to the illness suffered by her former spouse, Louis "Stump" Stowers.

Doctors first pegged the cause of the Lula man's serious health condition to intentional arsenic poisoning in October 2007. But scientific tests conducted in the wake of his hospitalization prove the arsenic type found in his body was nontoxic, case lawyers agreed this week.

"This was like an episode of ‘House,'" Assistant Public Defender Brett Willis said, refering to the fictional medical detective. "That is exactly what this case was like, except (Dr.) House didn't work there. The doctor made an incorrect diagnosis based on partial information. That's what happened."

Becoming the victim, he said, was Brooks, who has since divorced Stowers. She was charged with criminal attempt to commit murder, aggravated battery and aggravated assault after a grand jury indictment in late 2008.

Willis described her as being "relieved" when told of Hall County Superior Court Judge Kathlene F. Gosselin's order this week. Brooks couldn't be reached for comment Thursday.

"It was about time for some goods news for her, because she's had some years of bad, worse and horrible news," Willis said. "They did the right thing here by dismissing this case."

Medical experts representing both sides expressed similar opinions about the key tests, the results of which were only discovered by the defense within the past four months.

A motion to dismiss, signed by District Attorney Lee Darragh, acknowledged the parallel results.

While the test used to build the prosecution's case showed the overall arsenic level in Stowers' system as dangerously high, the results did not specify the kind of arsenic found in the man's urine.

However, the additional tests proved the arsenic in Stowers was "organic" and consistent with the kinds of natural arsenic found in some seafood products.

"Although experts have concurred that the victim did exhibit ‘textbook' symptoms of arsenic poisoning, further testing not initially provided to the State has revealed that the victim tested positive for organic arsenic (nontoxic) rather than inorganic arsenic (toxic)," the prosecution's motion to dismiss stated.

Darragh could not be reached Thursday for comment.

What's not clear is why the additional test results were unknown for so long. They were conducted around the time of Stowers' illness.

The dismissal brings a three-year ordeal to a close for Stowers and Brooks, who left Hall County as investigators narrowed their focus in the wake of the original medical opinion.

Publicized details about the case focused on Brooks' actions leading up to Stowers' illness, which included organ malfunction and inflammation.

"Before we found this test that proved he wasn't poisoned, they built a case on circumstantial evidence," Willis said. "They were claiming that she was the beneficiary of the life insurance policies, therefore she must've been the one."

The couple divorced in May 2008 as a result of the ordeal. Brooks today lives in Tennessee.

The trial, which had been pushed back several times, was scheduled to begin in April. At stake, Willis said, was a jail sentence he estimated around 50 years.