Oscar's six years for murder

The high court in Pretoria has sentenced the “fallen hero” Oscar Pistorius to six years imprisonment for the murder of Reeva Steenkamp.

Judge Thokozile Masipa handed down the sentence this morning, after the Supreme Court of Appeal last year ruled that Pistorius was guilty of murder and not of culpable homicide.

Masipa found that there were substantial and compelling circumstances in the  case which merited a deviation from the minimum sentence of 15 years for murder.

“The life of the accused shall also never be the same. He is a fallen hero who has lost his career and is ruined financially. The worst is that, having taken the life of a fellow human being in the manner that he did, he cannot be at peace,” said Masipa in her judgment.

Masipa ruled that while Pistorius’ offer to do community service as punishment was a noble gesture, punishment is not “what you choose to do, however it is something that is imposed on you.”
 
“[Punishment] is unpleasant, uncomfortable, it is painful and inconvenient , it is certainly not what you want to do.”

Masipa came to the conclusion that “although a custodial sentence is the proper sentence, I am of the view that a long term of imprisonment will not serve justice in this matter.”

She said this was because Pistorius had “already served a sentence of 12 months imprisonment, was a first offender and, considering the facts of this mater he is not likely to reoffend.”

Masipa said a factor she had also taken into account was the fact that there a general misconception by some members of the public that there was an argument between Steenkamp and Pistorius and that he had killed her with direct intent.

She rejected an argument by state prosecutor Gerrie Nel that, the facts of the matter, murder with dolus eventualis as the required form of intent, was very close to direct intention, finding that there was no evidence before he court to that effect.

The court has since adjourned, but Masipa has indicated she will be available to hear an application for leave to appeal the sentence today.