TVC E. Oscar Pistorius has been sentenced to six years in prison for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in 2013.
The six-time Paralympic gold medallist was sentenced by a court in Pretoria on Wednesday morning, having been found guilty of murdering Steenkamp by an appeal court in December last year.
The 29-year-old killed Steenkamp by shooting through a locked toilet door in February 2013 and was originally convicted of manslaughter in September 2014, but that verdict was subsequently overturned.
Pistorius was facing a possible 15-year jail term for the murder but Judge Thokozile Masipa said substantial and compelling circumstances existed in the double-amputee Olympic runner’s case, which justified a lesser sentence.
Judge Masipa, who oversaw the original trial which led to the manslaughter conviction, said: “Although a custodial sentence is a proper sentence, I am of a view that a long term of imprisonment will not serve justice in this matter.
“The accused has already served a sentence of 12 months’ imprisonment, he is a first offender and, considering the facts of this matter, he is not likely to re-offend.”
And Judge Masipa then announced the sentence, which will probably see Pistorius serve three more years in jail.
Judge Masipa, who described Pistorius as a “fallen hero”, went on to order a recess, giving prosecutors and defence lawyers time to decide if either wanted to appeal the sentence.
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