Agency :
After 41 days of testimony spanning more than five months, a verdict in the Oscar Pistorius trial has been handed down: guilty of culpable homicide, a ruling that comes with no minimum jail sentence.
Judge Thokozile Masipa handed down her decision Friday, a day after revealing to a packed courthouse and worldwide television audience that no, she would not find Pistorius guilty of murder – premeditated or otherwise. Instead, her determination is that the death of 29-year-old Reeva Steenkamp in the early morning hours of Valentine’s Day last year was a tragic accident; that while Pistorius “acted hastily and used excessive force,” he did not show intent to kill his girlfriend.
Asking Pistorius to stand, Masipa read her decision. Not guilty of murder. “Instead,” Masipa said as Pistorius, reactionless, looked on, “he’s found guilty of culpable homicide.”
As Masipa read the verdict, Steenkamp’s parents remained silent, their faces drawn. Steenkamp’s cousin Kim began sobbing in the public gallery.
Pistorius, 27, also faced three counts of gun charges – two for discharging a gun in public, one for illegal possession of ammunition. Masipa found him guilty of one of those charges – negligently handling a firearm in a restaurant.
Per South African law, the verdict of culpable homicide carries a maximum sentence of 15 years, but does not call for a minimum sentence. The gun charge carries no minimum sentence, meaning Pistorius could receive no jail time whatsoever.
As court adjourned briefly for the judge to finalize sentencing hearing dates, Pistorius sat alone, silent and pensive, his head bowed in the dock. Joined by his sister Aimee, who laid her head on his shoulder, he leaned against her and closed his eyes.
Outside the courtroom, Jackie Mofokeng, a spokeswoman for a provincial branch of the ANC Women’s League, said the Steenkamp family is “not happy.”
“They are not in a good state,” Mofokeng said. “They are not happy their daughter is no more.”
After 41 days of testimony spanning more than five months, a verdict in the Oscar Pistorius trial has been handed down: guilty of culpable homicide, a ruling that comes with no minimum jail sentence.
Judge Thokozile Masipa handed down her decision Friday, a day after revealing to a packed courthouse and worldwide television audience that no, she would not find Pistorius guilty of murder – premeditated or otherwise. Instead, her determination is that the death of 29-year-old Reeva Steenkamp in the early morning hours of Valentine’s Day last year was a tragic accident; that while Pistorius “acted hastily and used excessive force,” he did not show intent to kill his girlfriend.
Asking Pistorius to stand, Masipa read her decision. Not guilty of murder. “Instead,” Masipa said as Pistorius, reactionless, looked on, “he’s found guilty of culpable homicide.”
As Masipa read the verdict, Steenkamp’s parents remained silent, their faces drawn. Steenkamp’s cousin Kim began sobbing in the public gallery.
Pistorius, 27, also faced three counts of gun charges – two for discharging a gun in public, one for illegal possession of ammunition. Masipa found him guilty of one of those charges – negligently handling a firearm in a restaurant.
Per South African law, the verdict of culpable homicide carries a maximum sentence of 15 years, but does not call for a minimum sentence. The gun charge carries no minimum sentence, meaning Pistorius could receive no jail time whatsoever.
As court adjourned briefly for the judge to finalize sentencing hearing dates, Pistorius sat alone, silent and pensive, his head bowed in the dock. Joined by his sister Aimee, who laid her head on his shoulder, he leaned against her and closed his eyes.
Outside the courtroom, Jackie Mofokeng, a spokeswoman for a provincial branch of the ANC Women’s League, said the Steenkamp family is “not happy.”
“They are not in a good state,” Mofokeng said. “They are not happy their daughter is no more.”
