Murder Conviction For Oscar Pistorius

A South African court convicted Oscar Pistorius of murder following the death of Reeva Steenkamp. The conviction carries at least 15 years in prison.

Pistorius was given a five-year jail sentence last year for "culpable homicide" over the death of his girlfriend on February 14, 2013. However, the ruling was appealed by prosecutors saying Pistorius should have been convicted of murder. Pistorius was found guilty of murder by Judge Eric Leach and that the accused had “criminal intent.” Judge Leach added that an appropriate sentence will be decided by the trial court.

In the trial last year, the Blade Runner said he thought Steenkamp was an intruder before shooting four times through a toilet door. Judge Leach said it was “inconceivable” for a rational person to think he had the right to shoot a person using a “heavy-duty firearm.” He also described the testimony of the athlete as "vacillating and untruthful".

Judge Leach added that he should be convicted of culpable murder instead of culpable homicide. The interpretation of the dolus eventualis principle or awareness of a possible result due to an action of Judge Thokozile Masipa was at the center of the case. This interpretation was used by Judge Masipa in acquitting Oscar Pistorius of murder.

Murder Conviction For Oscar Pistorius - image credit: telegraph.co.uk

However, state prosecutors said the athlete had the intention of killing Steenkamp, who locked herself inside the toilet after an argument. A new sentence will be given by Judge Masipa on the Pistorius at a later date. While murder convictions have minimum 15-year sentence in South Africa, the lawyers of Oscar Pistorius are expected to use his physical disability as well as mental stress as mitigating conditions.

The Paralympic champion will remain under house arrest in the mansion of his uncle while waiting for the new sentence. Anneliese Burgess, spokeswoman for the Pistorius family said the finding will be studied by the legal team and use it as a guide when consider options for Pistorius. No other comments were made by the camp of Oscar Pistorius.

On the other hand, Barry Steenkamp said he was satisfied with the new ruling and after everything that happened it’s time to move on.

After Pistorius served one year of his five-year prison term, he was released on parole and was placed under house arrest in October. Judge Leach said the time he already served will be included in the new sentence for murder. While he can make an appeal to the Constitutional Court of South Africa, his lawyers said h may not be able to pay for more legal battles.

Steenkamp was killed at the peak of the career of Pistorius who became the first double-amputee to participate in the Olympics. After the killing, Oscar Pistorius lost his status, well-paying contracts and sports career.

Posted by James Fried on Friday December 04 2015, 11:04 AM EST. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under World. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0