Tag Archives: Oscar Pistorius

South African prosecutor who jailed Oscar Pistorius quits.

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Gerrie Nel, the South African prosecutor who obtained a jail sentence for Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius for killing his girlfriend has resigned, a spokesman for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said on Tuesday.

Pistorius is the double-amputee former Olympic sprinter who killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp by firing four shots through a bathroom door in his Pretoria home on Feb. 14, 2013.

“Nel informed the NPA about his resignation on Monday.

“He cited he wanted to pursue other interests outside the NPA,’’ Luvuyo Mfaku told journalists.

Nel soared to international fame when he became the chief prosecutor in the trial of double-amputee Olympic sprinter Pistorius.

Nel initially obtained a five-year sentence for Pistorius after Judge Thokozile Masipa accepted the athlete’s argument that he mistook the model for an intruder.

In July 2016, the Supreme Court of Appeal found him guilty of murder and raised the sentence to six years.

Earlier on in his career, Nel was junior prosecutor in the case of the 1993 murder of anti-apartheid activist Chris Hani.

He also prosecuted former police chief and ex-Interpol president, Jackie Selebi, for whom he obtained a 15-year sentence for corruption in 2010.

Oscar Pistorius celebrates 30th birthday in prison.

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Oscar Pistorius celebrated his 30th birthday in a new, more comfortable jail as his family insist “some amazing things are happening for him”.

 

The shamed athlete last month won his claim to be moved from to a newly-refurbished, “more relaxed” prison, aimed at “low risk, non violent offenders” and disabled inmates, where he is surrounded by acres of lush gardens and trees.

 

As part of his rehabilitation programme, Pistorius will be expected to grow vegetables and work in the orchards, according to a top lawyer with knowledge of the prison.

 

“It is the ideal place for Oscar,” a family source revealed. “It is all on one level, so he can move around easily, and the bathroom facilities are now much less dangerous for him.


“There are some worthwhile programmes of all kinds on offer and some amazing things are happening for him. He is in the ideal place for where he needs to be at the moment.”

 

Last week, the South African double amputee – who is serving six years for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp – quietly marked his landmark birthday at Atteridgeville Correctional Centre, in Pretoria, where bags of cards and letters arrived.

 

Many of them were sent to his family who live only a few miles away.

 

The prison, which has undergone a multi-million pound facelift and boasts upgraded bathrooms for disabled inmates, is described as “more family like atmosphere” by defence lawyer Llewellyn Curlewis, who visits regularly.

Oscar Pistorius House Where Reeva Was Killed, Now To Serve As Weekend Party Venue

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The house where Oscar Pistorius shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp is set to be used as a party venue by two businessmen. The pair have insisted there was “no disrespect” over their plans for the building in Pretoria, South Africa.

Beers in hand, business partners David Scott, 33, and Kagiso Mokopane, 23, were seen in a footage giving a tour of the property where they intend to host parties on weekends, claiming it is perfect for entertaining people.

They will be renting the house from owner and mining consultant Louwtjie Louwrens, who bought the house for 4.5 million rand (£220,000).

Pistorius had to sell the property to pay for mounting legal fees during his trial.

Ms Steenkamp, a model and reality TV star, died when Pistorius fired four shots though the bathroom door at his home on St Valentine’s Day in 2013.

The 28-year-old said at his trial he believed there was an intruder and that Ms Steenkamp was in the bedroom at the time.

The judge accepted his version of events and cleared him of murder, but he was found guilty of culpable homicide and jailed for five years.

The Paralympic gold medallist was given an additional three-year sentence, suspended for five years, for firing a gun in a restaurant.

He was set to be released on parole in August, but this has been delayed.

Standing in front of the crime scene, Mr Scott insisted: “It’s not too soon. No disrespect to anything that happened.”

He said: “We can decorate the house in honour of what happened here and then we’ll invite people over.

“This is definitely an entertainer’s house, Oscar built this house to entertain.

“Hot girls can invite themselves.”

Mr Mokopane said: “We really enjoy life, entertainment but work comes first obviously, but every weekend it’s going to go down here. Find me here, find us here, Silver Woods Country Estate.”

He added: “I feel bad for Reeva’s parents and you know my heart goes out to her family, indeed. What he did was wrong, it was never supposed to happen that way.”

Oscar Pistorius To Stay In Prison Until At Least Mid-September – Family

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Oscar Pistorius’s parole review has been set for 18 September, meaning the athlete will spend at least another three weeks in jail, his family has said.

Pistorius, who was convicted of culpable homicide for killing his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, was due to be moved to house arrest last Friday after serving 10 months behind bars.

But Michael Masutha, the justice minister, referred the matter back to the parole review board. The justice department said the athlete had been approved to be moved to house arrest too soon.

Pistorius should have served 10 months, or one-sixth of his five-year sentence before being considered for release, a justice department spokesman said last week. But he was approved for parole in June, eight months into his sentence.

Pistorius is set to remain in jail as the review panel, which includes three judges, could take weeks or even months to make its decision.

Pistorius Appeal Hearing set for December 9

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South African prosecutors on Monday said that their request to appeal Oscar Pistorius’ manslaughter conviction and five-year prison sentence would be heard on December 9.

The jailed Paralympian’s legal team has opposed the move, setting the stage for a hearing before the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria in a month.

The National Prosecuting Authority had described Pistorius’ sentence for killing Reeva Steenkamp as “shockingly light”.

Under South African law the double-amputee could serve just 10 months in jail.

The prosecuting authority said Monday it “believes there exists reasonable prospects of a successful appeal based on a question of law.”

Credit: Yahoo News

Pistorius Prosecutors File Appeal Papers

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Prosecutors filed appeal papers Tuesday against the verdict and sentence in the Oscar Pistorius case, the initial step in a process that could see the Olympic runner convicted of murder for killing girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority said it had filed for leave to appeal, which are papers filed to Judge Thokozile Masipa to request permission to appeal her decision.

Masipa acquitted Pistorius of murder for shooting Steenkamp multiple times. She instead found the double-amputee athlete guilty of a lesser charge of culpable homicide, or manslaughter.

Prosecutors said the appeal against that verdict was “based on the question of law,” meaning they think Masipa made a mistake when she acquitted Pistorius of murder. Prosecutors have said they believe Pistorius should have been found guilty of murder for shooting four times through a toilet cubicle door in his home, hitting Steenkamp in the head, arm and hip.

The 27-year-old Pistorius would face a minimum of 15 years in prison if convicted of murder on appeal.

The papers were filed Tuesday at the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria, where Pistorius’ seven-month trial murder trial was held, the NPA said in a statement. Prosecutors started their appeal exactly two weeks after Pistorius was sentenced to five years in prison for killing Steenkamp. The terms of his current sentence mean he could be released from the hospital wing of a prison in Pretoria, where he is being held, after 10 months to complete his sentence under house arrest.

Judge Masipa will consider the appeal and rule in a court hearing if it should be referred to the Supreme Court of Appeal. The NPA did not provide any date for the appeal hearing.

Credit: Yahoo News

Oscar Pistorius ‘has no Money’ says Lawyer

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Pistorius sobbed as defence lawyer Barry Roux said that the athlete no longer had any money after the long trial, which has lasted over seven months. “He is not only broke but he is broken,” he said. “He’s a first offender. What has happened to this man? He was on the rise,” Mr Roux added.

The lawyer asked Judge Masipa to consider the South African principle of “ubuntu”, roughly translated as kindness towards others, in her sentencing. The prosecution is expected to present its closing argument later on Friday.

Pistorius was convicted of culpable homicide last month after shooting dead his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp last year, but was cleared of murder. Judge Thokozile Masipa is expected to deliver her sentence on Tuesday.

He faces up to 15 years in jail, but the judge may choose a suspended sentence or impose a fine instead. The sentencing hearing, which began on Monday, has seen the prosecution push for the maximum custodial sentence.

 

Prosecutor: Pistorius being Portrayed as ‘Victim’

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Prosecutor Gerrie Nel was cross-examining Pistorius’ agent, Peet van Zyl, on the second day of a sentencing hearing in South Africa for the double-amputee Olympic runner who was found guilty last month of culpable homicide by Judge Thokozile Masipa.

Oscar Pistorius was being portrayed as a “poor victim” ahead of his sentencing for killing girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, the chief prosecutor said Tuesday.

Van Zyl was called to testify by Pistorius’ defense lawyers, who are arguing that Masipa should be lenient on the multiple Paralympic champion, who they say has suffered emotionally and financially after the shooting. Van Zyl testified Monday regarding what he called Pistorius’ extensive charity work before the Feb. 14, 2013 shooting death of Steenkamp and said that Pistorius had now lost all his product endorsements because of the killing. Cross-examining van Zyl, Nel said “You view Mr. Pistorius as a poor victim of this case,” which Van Zyl denied.

Pistorius, 27, could receive a fine and a suspended jail sentence or as many as 15 years in prison.

Psychologist says Pistorius is a ‘Broken Man’

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Dr. Lore Hartzenberg gave a testimony ahead of the runner’s sentencing for culpable homicide, and it was almost immediately characterized by the chief prosecutor as unbalanced.

Hartzenberg said, Oscar Pistorius is a “broken man” after killing girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp because he lost the woman he said he loved as well as his reputation, friends, income and sense of self-worth, a psychologist called by his lawyers testified Monday.

He added that Pistorius had sometimes cried, retched, perspired and paced up and down during meetings in which she tried to assist him.

“Some of the sessions were just him weeping and crying and me holding him,” Hartzenberg said.

The testimony was part of an effort by the runner’s legal team to persuade Judge Thokozile Masipa that Pistorius has suffered emotionally and materially for what he said was an accident and that he is remorseful. The team hopes the judge will be lenient when she sentences Pistorius after what is expected to be about a week of legal argument and testimony.

“We are left with a broken man who has lost everything,” Hartzenberg said during her testimony.

Prosecutor Gerrie Nel criticized her findings, saying Pistorius would likely have the chance to rebuild his life.

Oscar Pistorius’ Trial Judge Expected to Deliver Verdict

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 Oscar-Pistorius-Trial_0_0  Pistorius-Steenkamp

South African Judge Thokosile Masipa will begin delivering her verdict on Thursday morning on the murder trial of Oscar Pistorius.

The South African track star is accused of murdering his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, in the early hours of Valentine’s Day 2013. Mr Pistorius says he mistook Ms Steenkamp for an intruder. The stop-start trial has lasted more than six months and included many moments of drama.

Pistorius os

These are some of the key moments in the case against Oscar Pistorius, which was led by state prosecutor Gerrie Nel.

The athlete has admitted firing the shots which killed her, but exactly what happened in his home that night lies at the centre of his murder trial.