Oscar Pistorius Granted Parole in South Africa Murder Case
More than a decade after Oscar Pistorius shot and killed his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, the former double-amputee sprinter once known as “Blade Runner” will be released on parole from a South African prison in January. South Africa’s Department of Correctional Services noted the release in a statement on Friday.
Pistorius, 37, rose to international fame in the 2000s when he dominated sprint competitions using prosthetic legs. Born without fibulas, Pistorius became the first double amputee to run at an Olympic level in the 2012 Olympic Games.
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The fame turned to infamy, however, when Pistorius was charged with murdering Steenkamp in his home.
As Pistorius told it, he heard what sounded like a window sliding open in the bathroom in the early morning hours of Feb. 14, 2013. On his stumps at the time, Pistorius said he feared a home invasion was taking place. He armed himself with a gun and, he claims, told Steenkamp to call the police. Pistorius testified that after he heard movement in the bathroom, he fired four shots into the door, which was locked. Hollow point bullets struck Steenkamp, who was a model and paralegal. Pistorius said it was a horrible accident and “tragedy” that Steenkamp was behind the door. There was no intruder.
Prosecutors painted a vastly different account, highlighting text and WhatsApp messages indicating Pistorius and Steenkamp had a troubled relationship. Just 18 days before her death, Steenkamp texted Pistorius, “I’m scared of you sometimes, and how you snap at me and of how you will react to me.” A neighbor testified while he was in his bed, he heard a woman screaming out for help before hearing a gun firing four shots. Steenkamp, prosecutors insisted, was trying to flee Pistorius.
Judge Thokozile Masipa found Pistorius guilty of culpable homicide, which is roughly equivalent to involuntary manslaughter in the U.S. and refers to an unlawful and negligent killing of another person. She held prosecutors failed to prove that Pistorius premeditated or intended the killing, though she still deemed Pistorius acted recklessly and with excessive force. Pistorius was sentenced to five years for Steenkamp’s death in 2014.
Unlike in the U.S., where the Double Jeopardy Clause in the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution generally bars prosecutors from appealing, South Africa law permits such appeals. The Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa heard an appeal and convicted Pistorius of murder. His sentence was eventually increased to 15 years, less time already served, in 2017.
Pistorius was granted parole on account of him meeting applicable requirements and his status as a first-time offender.
Before his criminal issues, Pistorius faced legal controversies over whether his prosthetics accorded him an unfair advantage in competition. According to one German study in 2007, Pistorius used 25 percent less energy than natural runners. A year later, the International Association of Athletics Federations banned Pistorius from competing against able-bodied athletes. The Court of Arbitration for Sport later revoked the ban, finding uncertainty in whether Pistorius enjoyed an advantage. Some of the science suggested that while Pistorius positioned his body differently than other sprinters, he expended a similar amount of effort and consumed similar levels of oxygen.
