The Story Oscar Pistorius: Charges of Murder, Imprisonment & Parole

January 5, 2024 / Kings

Oscar Pistorius, full name Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius is an athletic and paralympic gold medalist notoriously known for his use of carbon fiber prosthetic blades. Born in 22 November 1986 in Sandton, Oscar Pistorius came into limelight after winning Gold at the 2012 Summer Paralympics London, England, United Kingdom.

Murder of Reeva Steenkamp
In February 14 2013, Oscar Pistorius shot and killed his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, in his home in Pretoria, firing four shots through a bathroom door after confusing her to be an intruder. According to Oscar Pistorius, he never knew the person that got into his home was his girlfriend.

Charges
Oscar Pistorius was charged to court formally on February 19 2013 but was granted bail after denying the allegations and charges of murder levied on him. In the following year, March 3, 2014 to be precise, a trial began at the high court in Pretoria against Oscar Pistorius, with the prosecutor arguing that Reeva Steenkamp was intentionally murdered by Oscar Pistorius, in defense, Oscar Pistorius claimed it was an accidental shooting and noting that his actions that day were not intentional.

Throughout the month of March 2014, the prosecutor and defender brought in witnesses, mostly neighbours to testify before the court. In July 2014, Oscar Pistorius and his defense team backed up their arguments on the unintentional actions by calling on expert witnesses to testify about Oscar’s anxiety disorder and vulnerability to perceived threats.

High Court Judgements
Following the solid evidence provided by both the Prosecutor and Defender, Judge Thokozile Masipa on the 11th of September 2014 cleared Oscar Pistorius of not guilty of premeditated murder and second-degree murder, but guilty of culpable homicide. He was sentenced to to five years in prison for culpable homicide and a concurrent three-year suspended sentence for a separate reckless endangerment conviction.

Imprisonment
Oscar Pistorius was moved to the Kgosi Mampuru II prison in Pretoria on October 21, 2014 where he began his service.

Appeal
In November 2014, the prosecutors appealed the judgement of the high court and requested the supreme court should convict Pistorius of murder and punish him with a harsher sentence.

Supreme court Judgement
In July 2016, Judge Thokozile Masipa extended Pistorius’s sentence to six years. But the sentence was later increased to 13 years and five months after the State petitioned the SCA directly, arguing that the six-year sentence was far too lenient.

A part of Justice Legoabe Willie Seriti’s judgement reads: “The sentence imposed by the…[high court] with respect to murder is set aside and substituted with the following – the respondent’s imprisonment for 13 years and five months.”

Release on Parole
Pistorius was initially released on parole and put under house arrest after serving only 10 months of the five-year sentence in prison. He was required to spend the remaining four years of his sentence under house arrest at his uncle’s home. But all that was cancelled in August 19, 2015 when the Justice Minister revoked Oscar Pistorius’ Parole due to concerns about his compliance with the terms of his release.

Oscar Pistorius was again paroled in November 24, 2023 by the Department of Correctional Services and was let free on the 5th of January 2024. Terms of Pistorius’ parole include mandatory community service, and attending therapy.

‘The Department of Correctional Services (DCS) able to confirm that Oscar Pistorius is a parolee, effectively from 5 January 2024. He was admitted into the system of Community Corrections and is now at home,’ a statement from the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) reads.

Reactions of Reeva Steenkamp’s Family on the 2024 parole of Oscar
The family of Reeva Steenkamp welcomed the strict conditions under which Oscar Pistorius has been paroled. The family acknowledged that while they are okay with the parole, no amount of punishment will bring back their daughter.

“We have always known that parole is part of the South African legal system, and we have always said that the law must take its course. Oscar Pistorius’s release on parole, subject to certain conditions, has affirmed Barry and my belief in the South African justice system. The conditions imposed by the parole board, which includes anger management courses and programs on gender-based violence, send out a clear message that gender based violence is taken seriously. Has there been justice for Reeva? Has Oscar served enough time? There can never be justice if your loved one is never coming back, and no amount of time served wil bring Reeva back. We, who remain behind, are the ones serving a life sentence,” a statement from the family reads.