Olympic athlete Oscar Pistorius found guilty of culpable homicide

PanARMENIAN.Net - The Olympic and Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius has been found guilty of culpable homicide for the fatal shooting of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, Yahoo Sports reported.

The guilty verdict on the manslaughter charge, a day after the judge Thokozile Masipa cleared him of murder, means Pistorius could receive anything from 15 years in prison to a suspended sentence, which would potentially allow the double amputee a chance to resurrect his sporting career. The court will resume for sentencing on 13 October.

Masipa ordered Pistorius to stand as she delivered the guilty verdict. He stood ramrod with his hands folded in front of him. Steenkamp's parents, Barry and June, and other family members sat sombrely on the front row of the public gallery.

After the verdict, Pistorius turned to his family while members of Steenkamp's family comforted each other. When the court adjourned, June could be seen shaking her head and Steenkamp's close friend Gina Myers broke down and wept.

Masipa made it clear that that although the state did not have to prove a motive for murder, there was no evidence in front of the court to say that Pistorius wanted to kill Steenkamp.

But Masipa said Pistorius had acted negligently when he shot Steenkamp through a closed toilet door and was guilty of culpable homicide.

"A reasonable person, with a similar disability, would have foreseen that the person behind the door would be killed, and the accused failed to take action to avoid this," she told the court. Pistorius was granted bail at the close of the hearing ahead of sentencing. He left the Pretoria high court escorted by police and bodyguards through a scrum of television cameras.

With no mandatory sentence for culpable homicide, Masipa - known for handing out stiff sentences - will have a great deal of discretion over the punishment.

South Africa's prosecuting authority said on Friday, September 12 it was "disappointed" with the verdict but defended its decision to pursue a murder charge.

"The prosecutors held the view that there was sufficient evidence to secure a successful prosecution on the charges that were preferred against the accused," spokesperson Nathi Mncube said in a statement.

Asked if the Steenkamp family was disappointed by the outcome, their lawyer Dup de Bruyn said: "There's no comment at the moment."

The family would give interviews to media organisations after Friday's hearing according to their present contractual arrangements, he added.

Arnold Pistorius, who has spoken for his nephew before, delivered a short Pistorius family statement before leaving the court. Pistorius and his father, Henke, are estranged.

"There are no victors in this. We as a family remain deeply affected by the devastating tragedy … It won't bring Reeva back but our hearts still go out for her family and friends."

He said the family would make no further statement due to the ongoing legal proceedings but was grateful to the judge for clearing him of the murder charge as it had always believed his version of events.

Pistorius has said he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder when he shot four times through a locked bathroom door, killing her almost instantly.

He was also cleared on two unrelated firearms charges - of firing a firearm through a sunroof and of illegal possession of ammunition - but found guilty on a third of illegally discharging a firearm in a crowded restaurant in January 2013, weeks before Steenkamp's death.