Cape Town, South Africa (AP) Oscar Pistorius After serving nearly 10 years in prison for murder in South Africa, he could be granted parole on Friday.
The double amputee Olympic runner was one of the world’s most admired athletes before he shot and killed his girlfriend through a bathroom door on Valentine’s Day 2013.
Pistorius, who turns 37 this week, died in 2010. He was wrongly determined to be ineligible To leave early at the first hearing In March. This was due to an error made by the Court of Appeal when the sentence was officially commenced.
Pistorius was initially charged with manslaughter – the equivalent of murder – to murder. Reeva Steenkamp. That conviction was overturned He was accused of murder After an appeal by the prosecutor. They also appealed against the original sentence. Six years for murderUltimately, Pistorius was sentenced to 13 years and five months in prison.
Serious criminals in South Africa must serve at least half their sentences to be eligible for parole, which Pistorius did.
“All I can say is that all the programs included in the correctional sentence have been completed,” prison spokesman Singabako Nkmalo told reporters on Friday, ahead of the hearing at the Pretoria prison where Pistorius is being held. held. “Now it’s up to the Parole Board.”
Pistorius by His death sentence He mistakenly killed Steenkamp in the middle of the night, mistaking her for a dangerous intruder hiding in the bathroom, shooting her four times with a licensed 9mm pistol. Prosecutors argued. Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model and reality TV star, said she fled into the toilet kitchen during a late-night argument and Pistorius killed her in a fit of rage.
Pistorius was eventually convicted of murder, according to the principle of the law dolus EventualisWhich means he acted recklessly and should have known that everyone behind the door would be killed. It amounts to third degree murder.
Parole boards in South Africa take into account a number of factors, including the offender’s behavior in prison, their mental health and any danger they pose to society upon release. They also have different versions of forgiveness. Pistorius could be released on full parole or day parole, where he can live and work in the community but must return to prison at night.
The Department of Corrections said Pistorius could not be released immediately if he was granted parole and it was up to the parole board to “verify a placement date.”
If released, he is expected to live in his uncle’s luxury home in the wealthy Pretoria suburb where he was on trial for murder.
Pistorius was initially sent to Pretoria Central Prison, a notorious apartheid-era prison. He was transferred to the city’s Atteridgeville Correctional Center in 2016.
Over the past decade, there have been only occasional glimpses of Pistorius’ life behind bars. He said his father used to give Bible lessons to inmates, although there were flashes of trouble that led Pistorius to seek treatment, including a fight with another inmate on a prison phone.
Steenkamp’s murder happened at the height of his popularity and just months after he became the first doubles athlete to compete in the Olympics. He was also a multiple Paralympic sprint champion and one of the most recognizable figures in the sports market, having overcome the amputation of both legs as a child to run on specially designed carbon fiber blades.
In his dramatic trial, prosecutors argued there was another side to Pistorius’ life. Involved guns and angry conflicts with others. Pistorius was also found guilty of a second charge of recklessly firing a gun at the restaurant.
Stankamp’s mother, June SteenkampShe will not oppose Pistorius’ parole, her attorney said in an email to The Associated Press. Steenkamp’s father, Barry Steenkamp, died in September, and his mother’s decision not to oppose an early release undermined the family’s position.
Steenkamp’s parents gave an interview to a British newspaper in February on the 10th anniversary of their daughter’s death and said they had forgiven Pistorius, who still shot him in a fit of rage and wanted him in prison for life.
June Steenkamp attended Pistorius’ first parole hearing in March to oppose his release, but will not be present on Friday, her lawyer Tania Coyne said. Rob Matthews, a South African man whose 21-year-old daughter was killed in 2004, represented June Steenkamp at a parole hearing after she became a friend of the Steenkamp family, and Coyne said he would read a victim impact statement through her.
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