Source 1
Oscar Pistorius being jailed for five years for killing girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

South African athlete Oscar Pistorius has been jailed for five years for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

Judge Thokozile Masipa, issuing the ruling in court in Pretoria, also gave Pistorius a three-year suspended sentence for a firearms charge. Pistorius has been taken to the cells.

The prosecution had called for a minimum 10-year sentence; the defence for community service and house arrest.

Pistorius was convicted of culpable homicide but cleared of murder.
'Feeling of unease'

Judge Masipa began reading the sentence by saying that, although she had been aided by assessors, the decision was hers and hers alone.

She said: "Sentencing is about achieving the right balance. Sentencing is not a perfect exercise."

She said there must be a balance between retribution, deterrence and rehabilitation.

The judge then summarised the evidence brought before the trial.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-29700457

SOURCE 2
Oscar Pistorius jailed for five years
Pistorius was surrounded by police officers as he walked into a South African courthouse earlier today ahead of his sentencing.

The maximum sentence he faced was 15 years in prison.

Pistorius’ lawyers argued for a three-year period of correctional supervision, where the runner would spend periods under house arrest and also perform community service.

Prosecutors asked the judge to send him to prison for at least 10 years.

Pistorius was escorted through crowds of onlookers and into the Pretoria courthouse by police officers wearing blue berets.



The parents of Steenkamp, the woman he shot multiple times through a toilet cubicle door in his home on February 14, 2013, were also in court to hear the sentence.

The courtroom was packed, reflecting heightened media and public interest ahead of the sentencing. Police officers stood guard in the aisles.

Before proceedings started, Dr. Lore Hartzenberg, a psychologist, held Pistorius’ hand and spoke softly to him. Hartzenberg had testified for the defense that Pistorius was a ‘broken man’ after killing his girlfriend and had suffered emotionally and financially.

A Pistorius supporter laid three white roses near Pistorius.

‘I just wanted to bestow a little bit of inner happiness on Oscar,’ said the supporter, who added that she thought he had lost a lot of self-respect.

Outside the courthouse, a man in orange garb carried chains and a large sign that read: ‘Are certain offenders more equal than other offenders before the law?’

source: http://metro.co.uk/2014/10/21/oscar-pistorius-sentencing-athlete-jailed-for-five-years-for-killing-reeva-steenkamp-4914318/

https://www.nairaland.com/1959372/breaking-news-oscar-pistorius-been

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