Wellington, June 13 NZPA - Cries rang out in an emotion-filled court room after a High Court jury found five members of the family of Janet Moses guilty of her manslaughter during a curse lifting ceremony.

Those found guilty were: John Tahana Rawiri, 49; Tanginoa Apanui, 42; Angela Orupe, 36; Aroha Gwendoline Wharepapa, 48; and Glenys Lynette Wright, 52.

Hall Jones Wharepapa, 46; Gaylene Tangiohororere Kepa, 44; and Alfred Hughes Kepa, 48, were found not guilty.

A ninth defendant, Georgina Rawiri, was discharged in the High Court at Wellington on Wednesday after Justice Simon France said there was not enough evidence to charge her.

A man and woman with permanent name suppression who denied wilful cruelty towards a 14-year-old girl during the makutu were found not guilty.

The five found guilty were remanded on bail for sentencing on August 14.

As the verdicts were read out, family and supporters openly wept. Amid chaos outside the courtroom, people were shouting and wailing, and there was hostility towards media and lawyers.

One family member shouted the "law stands for lies", the Dominion Post reported.

The jury returned its verdicts around 10pm, after about 17 hours of deliberation.

During the six-week-long trial, the court was told the family believed Ms Moses had been possessed by demons after two family members stole a concrete lion statue from a hotel in Greytown, in Wairarapa.

The family performed an exorcism on Ms Moses in October 2007, forcing water into her mouth and eyes to flush out demons and lift the makutu.

Ms Moses drowned and the 14-year-old girl's eyes were injured as people picked at the demons they saw in them.

The Crown argued Ms Moses had an emerging mental illness.

Charlie Moses, Janet's paternal grandfather, told the newspaper before the verdicts were delivered, that the end of the case, no matter what the outcome, would let her spirit find peace.

"At least when they `get' the verdict she'll be at peace. Then we can get on with our lives, all of us."

He declined to speak after the verdicts. At first, he said, he felt hatred toward the family members who performed the fatal ritual, but hatred had been replaced by regret and sadness.

"We've made our peace with them. They didn't know what they were doing, even though I told them not to go down that road.

"They chose to do it anyway. For that mistake ... they're going to pay for the rest of their lives. I wish them well all the same."

Mr Moses said he regretted stopping his granddaughter's former partner, Andre Lambert, from entering the house on the night of the curse-lifting ceremony as he believed Mr Lambert would have stopped the ceremony.