Thread: Pistorius: The Trial of the Decade

Guilty of Culpable homicide.

So, that's it for now. Convicted of two counts, totaling a possible maximum sentence of twenty years.

Only after appeals, etc will the length of the sentence be determined at some later date. Meanwhile, he will probably be out on bail.

My opinion: Lucky lad.

Basically he's got away with cold blooded murder as you say a very lucky lad, the sentence will determine how much of a farce the whole thing is. Walking the streets again in 3-5 years is my bet.

Originally Posted by Mr Lick

<snip>


Gerrie Nel: Fierce prosecutor

• One of South Africa's most respected legal minds
• Known for his no-nonsense attitude inside the courtroom
• More than 30 years' experience
• No stranger to high-profile cases - prosecuted former police boss Jackie Selebi on corruption charges, calling him an "arrogant liar" during cross-examination
• Widely praised for his meticulous attention to detail

• Pistorius feels 'bull terrier' bite
• Pistorius trial: Key players

<snip>

Fierce prosecutor? Bull Terrier? Ha, ha! More like a yappy poodle.

And he's lost his murder case.

Actually having had a further 2 minutes to think about it, my money is on him being given house arrest and does no time in jail.

Appeals will depend on latest TV popularity ratings. So I guess a lengthy appeal process is in order. Lots of ppl here, is RSA, think he will walk with just community service, or less than 1 year

Talk is that the proscution may appeal. Without the waterworks with which to empathise, a different conclusion may be reached.

if you're Gerrie Nel, then I'm pretty sure you will ask for leave to appeal. Not sure if Judge will grant it.

Originally Posted by DaveS

if you're Gerrie Nel, then I'm pretty sure you will ask for leave to appeal. Not sure if Judge will grant it.

She'd do it in a heartbeat I'm sure. Gets the attention off her.

Sentencing on October 13 and he's been allowed to stay out on bail, so I'm still going with house arrest for his sentence.

For DaveS: Does RSA have "gentlemen's prisons" like the US. I mean the country club minimum security prisons where fat cat politicians, insider traders, white collar (and usually white) inmates are kept?

If so, maybe he does some time in one of them....If not, I'm with ^buriramboy.

Davis - -not really - you don't want to be in a SA prison - like most it is run by the gangs. but they do feed and clothe you and you earn money to buy smokes and stuff.

Can't belive that judge sent all fucking day reading her 'summary' FFS.

Back in the day they had separate prisons for whites and blacks, not sure this is still the case.
My money is on 3 years out in 1.

Better 10 years, out in 3-5...

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Talk is that the proscution may appeal.

How does that work then? I understand a defendant has a right of appeal but the prosecution?
On what grounds can they appeal?

Judge still has some leeway in deciding how culpable he was when she hands out the sentence.

In the immediate wake of the culpable homicide verdict, South African lawyers have questioned whether the judge in the Oscar Pistorius case erred in clearing the Olympic athlete of murder.

As state prosecutors announced they were considering appealing judge Thokozile Masipa's decision, legal experts suggested she may have focused too closely on the relationship between Reeva Steenkamp and Pistorius.

Had there been an intruder behind the toilet door, as Pistorius told the court he believed, then firing four shots into such a confined space would probably have been considered murder by other courts, some lawyers argued.

Emma Sadleir, an expert on social media law who has been monitoring responses to the verdict, told the Guardian that many South African lawyers were uneasy with the decision on common law murder – what is known in the country's laws as dolus eventualis murder.

"The legal fraternity are concerned that the test for dolus eventualis may been applied incorrectly," Sadleir said. "The judge seems to have concentrated on the question of whether it was Reeva.

Oscar Pistorius verdict questioned by South African legal experts | World news | theguardian.com

The verdict is a triumph of tortured legal thinking over common sense and an excellent example of why verdicts delivered by a judicial panel are inherently unsafe in many cases.

The prosecution has a burden to prove beyond reasonable doubt that something illegal happened and the perp was responsible and meant to do that thing. In presenting their case they achieved this but in such cases as the Pistorius murder one must apply common sense at some point when calculating whether or not he was telling the truth.

Any jury would have been directed by a judge that it is for them to weigh the evidence and consider it in the light of what they believe to be within reason and according to their experience - twelve good men and true, and all that. Had they been able to do so in this case that little shit would have been convicted of murder. No sane person would have believed that preposterous testimony of his, delivered in that ghastly, whining manner so obviously contrived and quite insincere.

The verdict is quite absurd but one didn't expect anything more from a judge who started her career as a court reporter. She is clearly intellectually challenged and out of her depth.

Pity the poor family.

^

I suppose the fact that he was rich white boy had nothing to do with her letting him off.

Jesus, what a friggin gong show EH.

Originally Posted by thegent

The prosecution has a burden to prove beyond reasonable doubt that something illegal happened and the perp was responsible and meant to do that thing. In presenting their case they achieved this but in such cases as the Pistorius murder one must apply common sense at some point when calculating whether or not he was telling the truth.

They had to prove the premeditated act of murder, which they clearly failed to achieve.

Originally Posted by thegent

The verdict is a triumph of tortured legal thinking over common sense and an excellent example of why verdicts delivered by a judicial panel are inherently unsafe in many cases.

The prosecution has a burden to prove beyond reasonable doubt that something illegal happened and the perp was responsible and meant to do that thing. In presenting their case they achieved this but in such cases as the Pistorius murder one must apply common sense at some point when calculating whether or not he was telling the truth.

Any jury would have been directed by a judge that it is for them to weigh the evidence and consider it in the light of what they believe to be within reason and according to their experience - twelve good men and true, and all that. Had they been able to do so in this case that little shit would have been convicted of murder. No sane person would have believed that preposterous testimony of his, delivered in that ghastly, whining manner so obviously contrived and quite insincere.

The verdict is quite absurd but one didn't expect anything more from a judge who started her career as a court reporter. She is clearly intellectually challenged and out of her depth.

Pity the poor family.

Rubbish. The verdict was correct.

You guys who think he shot her through the door because he was pissed off at her live in a f***ing scary world. I hope I never have to meet any of you.

Haven't they been through enough? Fresh anguish for Reeva Steenkamp's family with Pistorius set to cash in on killing the former model with book about the night he shot her
Pistorius' manager Peet van Zyl confirms double-amputee's book plans
Paralympic gold medalist is understood to be struggling to pay legal bills
Revenue from the book may help pay for any future legal battles
After his sentencing 'we will tell the world' about book, manager says
Pistorius was cleared of murder but convicted of culpable homicide


Read more: Oscar Pistorius to cash in on killing Reeva Steenkamp with a book | Mail Online
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Originally Posted by JetsetBkk

You guys who think he shot her through the door because he was pissed off at her live in a f***ing scary world. I hope I never have to meet any of you.

Do you live in an alternative reality?

He wouldn't be the first man to murder his partner in a fit of rage, now would he?

Half of the murders of females in South Africa alone are down to domestic violence.