Pistorius guilty of culpable homicide

Mangalore Today News Network

Pretoria (SA), Sep 13, 2014: “Blade Runner” Oscar Pistorius was convicted of culpable homicide on Friday for shooting his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, but walked free on bail ahead of what could still be a stiff prison sentence.

Judge Thokozile Masipa acquitted Pistorius of murder, but found that he acted “negligently” in killing Steenkamp by firing at her through a bathroom door, claiming he mistook her for an intruder.

The 27-year-old athlete, whose journey from disabled infant to Olympic sprinter inspired the world, will hear his punishment when sentencing begins on October 13.

Masipa, dismissing swathes of state evidence as inconclusive or irrelevant, ruled that on the charge of murder “the accused is found not guilty and is discharged. Instead, he is found guilty of culpable homicide.”

Pistorius stared straight ahead as the conviction was read, showing little emotion. But from the courtroom gallery there were sniffles and shallow breaths as friends and family of 29-year-old Steenkamp wept.

Culpable homicide carries no mandatory sentence under South African law.

But Masipa, who has a reputation for handing out stiff sentences, could decide to fine Pistorius or put him behind bars for more than a decade.

“It all comes down to how she feels, how bad the mistake was,” said Johannesburg lawyer David Dadic. “It’s a very serious negligence crime.”

Masipa also found Pistorius guilty on one of three other gun charges that were also levelled against him–that of negligently handling a gun that went off in a busy Johannesburg restaurant. He was cleared on charges of illegally possessing ammunition and firing a gun through a car’s sunroof.

Speaking after the verdict, Pistorius’s uncle Arnold said the damage done to the athlete’s career and life as a result of the trial had been “tragic.”

Courtesy: Deccan herald