Oscar Pistorius trial: Premeditated murder ruled out
Posted by Unknown on Thursday, September 11, 2014 | 0 comments
The judge in the Oscar Pistorius trial has ruled out a verdict of premeditated murder, saying the prosecution failed to prove he killed his girlfriend deliberately after an argument.
But Judge Thokozile Masipa also rejected the defence’s argument that the athlete lacked criminal capacity.
The judge said she was satisfied the accused “could distinguish between right and wrong”.
She said he was an evasive witness but this did not mean he was guilty.
The South African Olympic sprinter denies murdering Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day last year, saying he thought there was an intruder.
The judge could also find him guilty of culpable homicide, or manslaughter, for which he would face a long jail term.
Pistorius, 27, has pleaded not guilty to all the charges he faces, including two counts of shooting a firearm in public and the illegal possession of ammunition.
Judge Masipa began by detailing the charges against the athlete and repeating extracts of his testimony, reading in a slow, measured way.
She then moved on to a summary of the trial.
A tense-looking Pistorius looked on from the dock, and then began to weep.
The judge questioned the reliability of several witnesses who apparently heard screams and gunshots at the time of the incident, saying most of those who said they had heard the incident had “got facts wrong”.
The prosecution had used these witnesses to try to prove that Pistorius had killed Steenkamp with premeditation after an argument.
Later in her judgement, Judge Masipa concluded that the prosecution had failed in this.
“The state has not proved beyond reasonable doubt that the accused is guilty of premeditated murder,” she said. “There are just not enough facts to support such a finding.”
However, she also suggested that Pistorius knew his actions might result in death, which would leave him open to the charge of murder rather than culpable homicide.
“He stated that if he wanted to shoot the intruder he would have shot higher up and more in the direction where the opening of the door would be. To the far right of the door and at chest height,” she said.
“I pause to state that this assertion is inconsistent with that of someone who shot without thinking.
Pistorius wept as Judge Masipa recounted what happened on 14 February 2013.
