Oscar Pistorius released a day early to finish sentence under house arrest
Oscar Pistorius released a day early to finish sentence under house arrest
The Paralympian, found guilty of culpable homicide of Reeva
Steenkamp, will live at uncle’s house – but faces further legal action
from prosecution team
The house were Oscar Pistorius will serve the rest of his sentence.
Photograph: Greatstock / Barcroft Media/Greatstock / Barcroft Media
Oscar Pistorius
has been released from prison and will serve the remainder of his
sentence under house arrest at his uncle’s house, less than one year
into a five-year sentence for shooting dead his girlfriend Reeva
Steenkamp.
Pistorius’s family had been expecting his release on Tuesday morning, but late on Monday night his lawyer said the former Paralympian was already at his uncle’s house.
He is expected to remain under correctional supervision, or house
arrest, until 2019, pending the outcome of an appeal by prosecutors that
could yet see him returned to jail.
The Pistorius family said in a statement read by spokesperson
Anneliese Burgess on Tuesday morning that the athlete was still serving
his sentence for Steenkamp’s death.
“It is very important for the family to emphasise that Oscar’s
sentences hasn’t been shortened or reduced. He’s simply entering the
next phase of his sentence now. He will serve this under the strict
conditions that govern correctional supervision.
“The family will support Oscar as he serves out the remainder of the
five year sentence handed down by the trial judge, and he will strictly
adhere to the conditions set by the parole board and community
corrections.”
Oscar Pistorius’s family are delighted he is home, says spokeswoman Anneliese Burgess
The Steenkamp family’s spokesperson Tanya Coen said: “To them it does
not matter whether he was released yesterday, a few hours earlier or a
few hours later, whether he remains incarcerated or not. It makes no
difference to their lives because Reeva is still not coming back.”
The former athlete was convicted last year of culpable homicide after
he shot dead Steenkamp at his house in Pretoria. Pistorius maintained
that he had mistaken her for an intruder, and the court accepted his argument that he had not intended to kill her.
The state has challenged
Judge Thokozile Masipa’s original verdict of culpable homicide, and the
supreme court of appeals (SCA) will hear that appeal on 3 November.
Prosecutors argue that Pistorius should have been convicted of murder,
which carries a minimum sentence of 15 years.
Oscar Pistorius: what happens now that he’s been released?
Late on Monday night, Pistorius was taken from his cell to the
residence of his uncle, Arnold Pistorius, in Waterkloof, an upmarket
Pretoria suburb. The house is a three-storey converted Dutch Reformed
church on a luxury estate, and has a swimming pool.
Manelisi Wolela, a spokesperson for the department of correctional
services, confirmed that Pistorius had been released at 7.30pm on
Monday.
Television news crews outside Oscar Pistorius’ uncle’s house in
Waterkloof, Pretoria. Photograph: Greatstock / Barcroft Media/Greatstock
/ Barcroft Media
The decision to move him from the prison a day early – to avoid a
media circus on Tuesday morning – was made by the management of Kgosi
Mampuru II prison, the department of correctional services said in a
statement. “Oscar Pistorius was placed under correctional supervision
tonight. The handling of the actual placement is an operational matter
of the local management, and how they handle it is their prerogative
that is carried out in the best interest of all parties concerned, the
victims, the offender and the department of correctional services.”
Correctional services minister Michael Masutha had told local
broadcaster eNCA that the terms of Pistorius’s release included a
requirement to meet with Steenkamp’s parents, if and when they agree to
such a meeting. “It is especially the person who is the source of your
pain, who making peace with is likely to bring the greatest healing,”
said Masutha. Pistorius will also have to undertake community service
and attend regular psychotherapy sessions.
According to eNCA journalist Karyn Maughan, lawyers for the Steenkamp
family indicated that they were willing to meet with Pistorius, but
only “at the right time” and away from the public eye.
In June, a parole board told Pistorius he would be released on 20 August, only for this decision to be suspended by the government following public outcry.
A judicial review panel subsequently overturned it on a technicality.
Pistorius was granted a second parole hearing last week, which set the
20 October release date.
Reeva Steenkamp’s family give their reaction, speaking through their lawyer
Pistorius’s family had been concerned that his parole might be cut
short by further legal action. The Pistorius’s early release from prison
has been criticised by women’s groups in South Africa,
including the ANC Women’s League, who said they were “disappointed” by
the decision. “We pin our hopes on the SCA to repeal the judgment and
that Oscar must serve a sentence that would bring him back a changed man
and an advocate for women’s rights in future,” it said in a statement.
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