South African paralympic star Oscar Pistorius shoots girlfriend dead
http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/Bv...S-20130214.JPG
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African paralympic star Oscar Pistorius is being questioned by South African police for shooting dead his girlfriend at his home in Pretoria, domestic media said on Thursday.
Johannesburg's Talk Radio 702 said Pistorius was understood to have shot his girlfriend in the head and arm, although the circumstances surrounding the incident were unclear. He may have mistaken her for a burglar, the radio report said.
A police spokeswoman told Reuters that a woman had been found dead at the house but declined to give any more details.
Pistorius, who races wearing carbon fibre prosthetic blades after he was born without a fibula in both legs, was the first double amputee to run in the Olympics and reached the 400 semi-finals in London 2012.
South Africa has some of the world's highest rates of violent crime and some home-owners carry weapons to defend themselves against intruders.
Now Arrested: Charged with Murder
Pistorius, 26, had reportedly been dating Steenkamp for a few months. She was a law graduate and an aspiring model.
http://ll-media.tmz.com/2013/02/14/0...subasset-3.jpg
Steenkamp was killed inside Pistorius' home in Pretoria, South Africa. There are reports there have been "previous incidents" between the two at the home.
Bloodied Cricket Bat Found At Home: Steenkamp’s Skull Was “Crushed”
South Africa's City Press is reporting that a bloodied cricket bat was found in Pistorius's home and that it may have been used against his girlfriend of four months, Reeva Steenkamp. Police are investigating several different scenarios involving the bat, including whether it was used against Steenkamp, if Pistorius used it to break through the bathroom door or if Steenkamp used it in self defense against Pistorius. It is also being reported that Steenkamp's skull was crushed. The bat was said to have been covered in "lots of blood."
In its report, City Press claims to have spoken to three sources close to the investigation. According to the sources, police have ruled out the possibility of the mistaken burglar angle and the state has a "rock-solid" case against Pistorius. We've already had reports that police were called hours earlier because of a loud argument and that Steenkamp was shot through the bathroom door. The Press sources have provided a more fleshed-out account of the events leading up to bathroom shooting.
Steenkamp was wearing her nightie at the time. When the police inspected Oscar's bedroom, they found her overnight bag and iPad on the floor. A holster for a 9mm pistol was found on Oscar's side of the bed.
The bedclothes were crumpled. "It was clear that both of them had slept in the bed," said a police source.
One cartridge was found in the bedroom and the police suspect Oscar may have "chased" her and fired the first shot before Steenkamp could lock herself inside the toilet.
"The suspicion is that the first shot, in the bedroom, hit her in the hip. She then ran and locked herself in the toilet. She was doubled over because of the pain. He fired three more shots. She probably covered her head, which is why the bullet also went through her hand," said a source.
It is unclear from this account how or when the cricket bat played into the altercation. Police requested that Pistorius's blood be analyzed for steroid and other drug use in anticipation for a "roid rage" defense.
Following the shooting, Pisotrius allegedly called his family.
Pistorius' father received a call from his son just after 3.20am on Thursday, asking him to come to his house. When his family arrived, Oscar was carrying Steenkamp's body down the stairs from his bedroom to the entrance hall. Her head and arms were "dangling".
He allegedly told his sister, Aimee, that something terrible had happened and that he had mistaken Steenkamp for a burglar. The police questioned Aimee and took a sworn statement from her.
Steenkamp was still breathing and Pistorius tried to resuscitate her in the foyer. Paramedics and police arrived on the scene and, minutes later, she was declared dead.
Pistorius granted bail of 1 million rand ($113,000) in murder trial by judge
Graphic: In his own words – How Oscar Pistorius Killed Reeva Steenkamp
http://nationalpostnews.files.wordpr...ididit940a.jpg
Being Released After Serving 10 Months of 5-Year Sentence
Early release for a conviction of culpable homicide after killing girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
http://img.bleacherreport.net/img/im...630&h=420&q=75
Oscar Pistorius, who was convicted of culpable homicide after killing his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, will be released on parole August 21 after serving 10 months of a five-year sentence, according to Adam Withnall of the Independent.
“He’s behaving himself very well,” Zach Modise, the South African correctional services’ national commissioner, said in June, while noting that Pistorius wouldn’t serve his full sentence.
It’s still possible that Pistorius could be convicted of murder, as prosecutors are attempting to appeal the case to the South African Supreme Court. Pistorius claimed that he shot Steenkamp because he thought she was an intruder, but if prosecutors win the appeal and he is convicted of murder, he would be facing at minimum 15 years in prison.
Pistorius became an iconic figure during the 2012 Olympics, competing as an amputee in the 400-meter and 4x400-meter races. After killing Steenkamp in 2013, however, his trial gripped the nation of South Africa and the rest of the world.
Released to House Arrest at Uncle's Mansion One Day Early
rubbing salt in the wound to the victims family, now being released a day earlier but how will they fit him w/the ankle bracelet? :nonono:
https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media...5463694225.png
Former track star Oscar Pistorius, convicted of culpable homicide last year in the shooting death of his model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, was released on house arrest Monday, prison officials confirmed to the BBC. That’s one day ahead of schedule, and less than one year after he was first jailed.
The South African Pistorius, known as an Olympic and Paralympic athlete who ran on blade-shaped prosthetic legs, is expected to serve the rest of his five-year sentence at his uncle’s Pretoria home. The New York Daily News describes the house as a “plush mansion in the suburbs.”
BBC reporters say Pistorius’s parole terms bar him from owning guns and require him to attend regular therapy sessions. He will also likely be required to do community service.
For the prosecution, that’s not enough. An appeal to the Supreme Court, scheduled for a Nov. 3 hearing, argues Pistorius should have been convicted of murder, rather than South Africa’s manslaughter equivalent. A murder conviction would put him in prison for up to 15 years.
Steenkamp’s surviving family members will consider visiting Pistorius when the time is right, but they’re on record as saying he’s “getting off lightly,” and his sentence was “not enough for taking a life.”
