Almost a year ago exactly, Oscar Pistorius was found guilty of culpable homicide (American version: manslaughter) for the death of his then-girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. Oscar was sentenced to five years in prison, which wasn’t great but it was a harsher sentence than a lot of people believed he would get in the first place. Then, back in June, we learned that Pistorius’s lawyers were trying to get the sentence reduced, or failing that, have Pistorius placed under house arrest for the remainder of this sentence. The lawyers succeeded this week. Pistorius is now out of prison and at his uncle’s mansion in Pretoria.
South African Olympic and Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius has been released under house arrest nearly one year after he was jailed for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. He is expected to spend the remainder of a five-year prison sentence at his uncle’s upmarket home in Pretoria. Ms Steenkamp’s relatives say they think Pistorius is “getting off lightly”.
Pistorius, 28, was found guilty of culpable homicide, or manslaughter, of his 29-year-old girlfriend at a trial in October last year. A case lodged by the prosecution appealing against that decision is due to be heard by the Supreme Court of Appeal on 3 November. State prosecutors say Pistorius should have instead been convicted of murder.
The athlete was released on Monday evening, a day earlier than expected, according to a spokesman from the Kgosi Mampuru II prison, where Pistorius was being held. The double amputee athlete’s family said they had not expected the early release, and he would “strictly” adhere to his parole conditions.
Pistorius was driven under cover of darkness to his uncle’s house 20 minutes away, a premature departure designed presumably to avoid the media glare, says the BBC’s Karen Allen in Pretoria. It is understood he will not be electronically tagged but he will have restrictions on his movement, she adds.
The terms of Pistorius’s house arrest do not involve an electronic tracking device, as the BBC has said. He will not be allowed access to firearms, he will have random drug tests and he will not be allowed to drink alcohol. He will not be allowed to go out at night but he will be able to train for any potential track and field activities, although it’s believed that Pistorius is in “poor physical shape” and he doesn’t want to try to compete again.
So… this is depressing. I had actually gotten used to the idea that Pistorius would be released in some form, so this news isn’t surprising at all, but it’s still depressing. And I truly don’t understand how they can let him out on “house arrest” but not electronically monitor him? What’s he going to do? Pinkie-swear that he’s not going out at night? Cross his heart and promise that he won’t be playing with his uncle’s guns?
Photos courtesy of WENN, Getty.
He looks cold as ice, psychokiller
I actually think he looks really handsome in the blue t-shirt pic. Just goes to show you don’t know what a killer will look like. I hate even admitting that because I hate this man with a passion. I loathe his very existence, he is evil and I don’t for one second believe he feels any remorse. Shows what people think a woman’s life is worth! A measly year inconvenience..
All of this.
I agree. I think he’s incredibly handsome. You can’t tell a person’s character by how they look, even though we always want to. We just see what we think is true.
I feel like I can’t let a comment on this post go without saying, “he’s a douchebag.”
And the floodgates have opened…….good job, Judge who thought this was a good idea.
I clicked on this article to find out about the terms of his house arrest. So depressing. Can’t believe he won’t be electronically monitored. Even the Cracken Lohan had a monitoring anklet during her extended legal issues.
So no way to actually monitor is he is messing around with guns, or drinking. As you said Tiffany, good job, judge.
Considering he was out clubbing and drinking during the trial – i suspect that there will be parties at his little cottage. Even he wouldn’t dare breech the terms of his parole – it would only serve as fuel for the state prosecutors. It was bad enough that he got very special treatment in prison.
I wonder what the people of SA thing of this? He was a god over there – wonder if that’s changed.
@betty it has changed enormously!! The general feeling here is that he got away with murder. We don’t want him out on the streets. I live in the same city as him so please keep me in your prayers. I think he will get his karma though much like OJ, the similarities between them are astounding!!!
There is no justice in the world, I am convinced. What a joke.
BOOOOO… Another rich and famous person let off the hook! Hope he screws up a second time like O.J. or they get him in appeal/ lawsuit ect.
OJ didn’t screw up twice. Or at least not as the layman’s understanding goes.
Much of the crime that landed hi currently in jail was a plot to put him there. Having even the witnesses admit there was a plan and they had to convince him to continue his actions while intoxicated. Yes in the end OJ was there and a had a gun, but the road to get him there involved much plotting with him repeatedly trying to turn and leave, but members of his “crew/friends” refusing to let him walk away.
The full story is clearly a level of entrapment, but we all look the other way accepting he got away with murder.
What’s the color of the sky in your world?
This makes me sick. Unbelievable
I am right there with you Snowflake.
This man deliberately (and in a fit of jealous rage) shot and killed his gf.
So, it makes me feel just a wee bit better that the US is not the only Judicial System with major flaws. He is still culpable for Manslaughter and he gets to live on “house arrest” at his wealthy Uncle’s Mansion?
I call total Bullshit right here. He is a liar, and he does not deserve to have a life of freedom. What about Reeva Steenkamp?! She is dead and gone and if I were her family I would be suing and protesting—LOUDLY!
Ditto to everything NGBOSTON said. It is despicable and what a slap in the face to the victim’s family. Disgusting.
He’s lower than scum.
Rest in peace dear Reeva Steenkamp.
I still wonder if someone in a official capacity was paid off some how.
Rot in hell Pistoriuscum.
The judge was much too soft. IMO I didn’t like her, from the start she seemed to bend over backwards for that jerk. jmo
Poor Reeva. This makes me want to scream. No justice for her, and I believe he will kill again.
GNAT
I do not believe he would be STUPID ENOUGH to kill again. Simply because, the SOB knows he already got away with murder one time!
He is a Murderer–and the only thing waiting for him now is bad karma. Oh, and when he meets his maker.
And what is UP with all the South Africans supporting him? I used to follow his career and admire him….turns out he really let his wealth and priviledge go to his head. He is no Olympic Hero- he is a narcissistic, insecure BULLY who could not handle the fact that another man was contacting his GF (who incidentally was considering dumping his ass right before he took her life)
I believe she was actually frightened to leave him because she knew he was capable of great rage. Poor Reeva-a beautiful law Graduate. I think she saw him as her ticket to living her life in the limelight—and sadly, she paid an extremely high price for that fame……she paid with her own life.
NGBoston,..he absolutely will kill again, this man is a domestic abuser and men like that don’t change. It won’t be a gun this time…but he will absolutely murder another innocent by beating them in a fit of rage. All it takes is one bad punch and that can do a person in. He must face justice to protect future victims from becoming victims.
Pinetree13
You can’t know this so it shouldn’t be stated as fact unless you of 1 of the triplets from minority report.
He’s already been in fights and stopped by bystanders accounts on his own and not starting the fights to begin with.
I Do Not like this man and believe he got away with murder.
Let’s not make this so dramatic we make up facts to embellish what is already a horrible person killing a woman who was in a state of complete fear. The line between Facts and Opinions gets smudged from time to time.
From what I recall at the time, the judge was very careful with her deliberations. She was following the requirements of South African law. I can see the problem- there is no way to prove that he intended to kill her. I don’t really see what else the judge could have done with the facts at hand.
I was convinced after several knowledgeable people on here posted that the judge probably didn’t have much choice. That’s hard for me to wrap my head around, because to me, his story just made no sense at all, and it was obvious that he intended to kill her. But I wasn’t there and I understand that believing he intended to kill her and proving he intended to kill her are two different things. I don’t blame the judge when I say there was no justice for Reeva.
The police didn’t handle the case properly either. The judge worked with what she was given.
What do you mean there was no way to prove he killed her? They clearly proved it but chose instead to take his word for the account of the incident.
He knew damn well there was “no intruder”. I followed most of the case and it was clear that he deliberately shot at her. What convinced me was the evidence of some witnesses in the building that heard the arguing and the fighting and even heard Reeva crying. Why would she be crying? Because she feared for her life.
The only thing worse than the South African Justice/Legal System is probably the US Legal System and those of other undeveloped nations and Third World Countries.
I agree with FingerBinger—the SA Police messed up a bit, too. The Judge had all the power to convict and let him off LIGHTLY. Now he is out of prison in just over a year?! And, House Arrest my Arse. That Man will do what he wishes.
His career is OVER, but even that makes no difference bc his family will take care of him the rest of his life.
I despise him.
NGB Boston- exactly. Furthermore, he intended to kill whoever was in that bathroom regardless of him being “mistaken” as to their identity (and I do not believe that ludicrous tail for a second.) That is essentially what the prosecution’s appeal is about if I’m not mistaken, that he intended to kill whoever was in the bathroom (that intention being based on his actions of shooting four times in to a confined space, not on his version of events) and therefore should have been convicted of murder. I hope with all my heart that the prosecution’s appeal is successful, but I think tragically it is unlikely.
It makes me sick to my stomach that Reeva got no justice. It’s interesting that before and after dating Reeva he always went for very young girls. Reeva was older than him, independent, educated, his intellectual superior and challenged him on his behaviour as shown in their whatsapp exchanges; his pathetic ego could not handle this and she paid the price. Poor girl.
@NGBoston I’m South African and who are these ‘ all these South Africans’ exactly that have been supporting him?? You had been following the case? Well they should have made you the judge then! Unfortunately law and burden of proof differs from country to country and as much as that sicko was guilty, the judge had to do her job and look at the evidence according to the letter of the law. Regardless of what the armchair internet Law Professors such as yourself think. FYI if u had been following the case, you would know that crucial evidence was jeporsised by the lead detective which tainted the entire case!
Lilian – It’s not just “armchair internet Law Professors” who think the judge got it wrong, it’s actual Law Professors. Read James Grant’s essays on how, in his opinion, the Judge misapplied the law. He is now working with the prosecution who obviously also think there is a reasonable chance of being successful in their argument that the Judge misapplied the law, hence the appeal. Are you going to accuse them of not following the case properly too?
It feels like Casey Anthony 2.0. Different cases but the same belief from the worldwide general public that justice was NOT served, whatever the reason.
Yeah, I have no words on how unjust this seems. He is despicable.
The intensity of this man’s delusion will demand that his true nature resurfaces at some time in the future, and he will kill again. It’s a foregone conclusion that this will be a matter of when and not if. His time in jail will not have dulled his sense of entitlement and superiority. Maybe next time he will get what he deserves. One can only hope.
Less than a year in prison for murder? Disgusting. My heart goes out to Reeva and her family.
He killed Reeva as she tried to hide in the bathroom. No justice for her. He has dead, cold eyes that defy the crocodile tears he shed during the trial. She was getting ready to dump has cold hearted ass, if only she had. He repulses me beyond measure.
She was certainly trying to leave that nite – why else would she be cowering in a locked toilet fully dressed with her mobile phone.
The problem is his story couldn’t be completely proved or disproved and the Judge had to act within the law on the facts presented to her. If an appeal goes ahead he can’t afford to pay his lawyers (in fact he owes them a LOT of money). I hope that the defense proves its case on appeal.
I have a friend who came to the States from South Africa ten years ago. She said everyone there is mortified and disgraced by him. They live a much different life obviously over there. He killed her and will be living the life again. He’s crazy. She had only been with him two months. Her parents must be so anguished. We’d like to believe that the bad guys will get what they deserve, sadly they rarely do.
I just don’t understand why his story was ever believed by anyone.
Me either!!
Me neither. If it wasn’t so tragic I would say it was laughable. He kept saying in his own defence that his version had never wavered which was total bullshit. He altered it to fit the facts as they emerged, it changed from the bail hearing to the trial. My bloody boils just thinking about this all again 🙁 .
Yeah it made no sense at all. As if you wouldn’t call out to your loved ones if you thought there was an intruder. And shooting a closed bathroom door? Please. This was straight up intentional murder.
This makes me so sad for that poor girl and her loved ones. 1 year for murdering someone. I don’t know south Africa’s legal system but this seems incredibly lenient. It’s quite strrange when one considers the problem that country has whith violent crimes.
SA has one of the highest rates of violence against women in the world and he’s not the first to get a lenient sentence and sadly won’t be the last.
He’s always been a violent scumbag, was well known in the athletic world for his bad attitude and threats to other athletes.
You must remember that he was not found guilty of murder though, if he had been his sentence would have been at least fifteen years, I believe.
15 years is all they give in SA for the sentence of Murder? Wow. And it is true that SA has one of the highest rates of violence against women in the world, and it is true there is a high crime rate.
However! Isn’t it time for some of these antiquated Justice Systems to change some of their laws so the sentences match the crimes committed?
15 years does not seem like an adequate enough sentence for deliberately taking someone else’s life.
Pinkie-swear that he’s not going out at night? Cross his heart and promise that he won’t be playing with his uncle’s guns?…… LMAO
All I can hope for at this point is a good dose of schadenfreude to come his way. In the meantime, may he step on all the legos. May his every encounter with paper, result in a paper cut. May he get a hard boil on his butt that never goes away. May he be cursed with a limp dick.
I love those curses, and will add my curse energy to yours. Plus, the next time he’s trying to impress a woman, may he unintentionally fart loudly.
Stepping in Legos won’t hurt him his feet are prosthetic! May he be shamed by all for all his pathetic life
You’re right. In my zest to wish him as much pain as possible, I forgot about that.
Er … he doesn’t have ankles. That’s a pretty good reason to not fit him with an electronic ankle monitor. (SA law doesn’t allow for wrist monitors because they’re too easy to remove.)
But I don’t think it’s a huge issue. Back in the days before electronic monitors (gosh I feel old), people still got out on parole. Your parole officer would just call the house at random times to check that you were there.
I know that wasn’t meant to be funny, but I just LOL at “er…he doesn’t have ankles”
Awful horrid man
Pistorius is the OJ Simpson of South Africa.
^^^^ THIS
So, maybe—just maybe his life as a “free man” will become shit—and he will end up back in Jail like OJ did.
OJ continued his abuse with his own Daughter and other gf’s after he murdered NBS and RG.
Perhaps the OJ of SA will follow suit and be sued so much and get in so much legal trouble that he will be broke and penniless, too.
Eff OJ and Eff Pistorius.
Initially I thought he would still feel the effects of this because his track career is over. But then I realized his family is rich so he can continue living a comfortable lifestyle so he will never suffer. His ego is the only thing that is deflated. But for a sociopath that’s a lot.
Well. Here’s to that non-existent, crazy idea of the war on women. nothing to that, eh ladies? We really are an endangered species. I’m sick of this shit.
I can’t say that he would have been convicted in America, but what I can say is that, if he had, HOUSE ARREST would not have been on the table. SMH.
We live in a world where men are set free daily after raping, beating, or killing women. Even though he is a privileged man, Oscar Pistorius is just the tip of the iceberg of the violence against women that is tolerated by legal systems in countries all over the globe, not just in South Africa. My friend has told me that her dad has beaten her mother on numerous occasions. The police have been called and they do nothing. Not even a police report is filed. She lives in a country where men get away with domestic assault all the time because it is culturally acceptable. I hope that this case will drive Reeva’s family and other South Africans angered over this outcome to fight for tougher laws on domestic violence and to help curb the high rates of domestic homicide in their country.
So true, kibbles. It’s certainly not just South Africa. It happens all the time everywhere.
This. Female life is cheap. Even more so when the abuser is a white male. Somehow I doubt that if Pistorious was a black male from a township who had killed a white girl, we would be talking about this house arrest business.
So depressing and true 🙁
He’ll probably be motivated to stay inside since I’m sure there is more than one person who’d think nothing of shooting him.
Bad temper and trigger-happy attitude (thanks to being in a country with a high crime rate). I never believed his BS story. But I do think he’s unlikely to re-offend.