Oscar Pistorius jailed five years for killing girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp
Steenkamp's family 'welcomes' decision; prosecutor says athlete will effectively serve two years in prison and three years under house arrest
PUBLISHED : Tuesday, 21 October, 2014, 4:27pm
UPDATED : Tuesday, 21 October, 2014, 5:26pm
Associated Press in Pretoria
South African Olympic and Paralympic track star Oscar Pistorius attends his sentencing at the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria on Tuesday. Photo: Reuters
Oscar Pistorius was sentenced to five years in prison on Tuesday at the climax of a months-long trial of the disabled Olympic runner for the killing of his girlfriend on Valentine’s Day last year.
Pistorius was given prison time for culpable homicide after he fatally shot Steenkamp through a toilet cubicle door in his home.
Judge Thokozile Masipa also handed down a three-year suspended sentence for a firearms charge.
Masipa had a range of options for Pistorius’ punishment after convicting the double-amputee athlete of culpable homicide, or negligent killing - but acquitting him of murder.
Steenkamp’s ailing father, Barry, said he was “very glad” the seven-month trial is over and a lawyer for the family said the sentence was “welcome”.
Judge Thokozile Masipa presided over the Pistorius murder trial. Photo: EPA
As Pistorius was escorted to his holding cell, the Steenkamps' lawyer told reporters outside the court that it was the "right sentence" for Pistorius and that justice had been served.
The Steenkamps’ lawyer, Dup de Bruyn, said the sentence would likely be served as two years in prison and three years under house arrest. “In effect he gets three years’ correctional supervision and two years’ direct imprisonment,” said De Bruyn, after the sentencing hearing ended.
De Bruyn said that Steenkamp’s parents were satisfied with the decision. “They feel it’s right,” he said.
Visibly relieved, Steenkamp’s mother June turned to a family friend, Gina Myers, to thank her for her steadfast support throughout the trial before leaving the courtroom.
Pistorius’ lawyers had argued for a three-year period of correctional supervision, where the runner would spend periods under house arrest and also perform community service. Prosecutors asked the judge to send him to prison for at least 10 years, citing the “horrific” nature of Steenkamp’s death after she was shot multiple times.
Masipa said at the start of proceedings on Tuesday that the two legal assessors who had assisted her throughout the trial, flanking her on the dais during court proceedings, were not involved in the sentence decision.
“The decision of sentence is mine and mine alone,” she said.
Parents of the late Reeva Steenkamp Barry and June arrive at the court in Pretoria. Photo: AP
The judge said sentencing was about “achieving the right balance” involving a number of factors, including the interests of society. Masipa said sentencing was not a “perfect exercise” and that a variety of sentences might be appropriate in some cases.
Pistorius was asked by the judge to remain seated on a wooden bench in the Pretoria courtroom until she formally announced his sentence. He sat and looked straight ahead at Masipa as she read from her judgment.
Pistorius, 27, was earlier escorted through crowds of onlookers and into the Pretoria courthouse by police officers wearing blue berets. The parents of Steenkamp, the 29-year-old model he shot multiple times through a toilet cubicle door in his home on February 14, last year, were also in court to hear the sentence.
The courtroom was packed, reflecting heightened media and public interest ahead of the sentencing. Police officers stood guard in the aisles.
Reeva Steenkamp (left) had dated the Olympic athlete, dubbed "Blade Runner" for his prosthetics, for around three months before the shooting. Photo: AFP
Before proceedings started, Dr Lore Hartzenberg, a psychologist, held Pistorius’ hand and spoke softly to him. Hartzenberg had testified for the defence that Pistorius was a “broken man” after killing his girlfriend and had suffered emotionally and financially, and shouldn’t be sent to prison.
A Pistorius supporter laid three white roses near Pistorius.
“I just wanted to bestow a little bit of inner happiness on Oscar,” said the supporter, who added that she thought he had lost a lot of self-respect.
Outside the courthouse, a man in orange garb carried chains and a large sign that read: “Are certain offenders more equal than other offenders before the law?”
With additional reporting from Agence France-Presse
