Oscar Pistorius, the South African Paralympic who shot his girlfriend to death on Valentine’s Day last year, has been sentenced to five years in prison.
Pistorius, who was charged with culpable homicide, will have to serve at least one-sixth of his sentence, about 10 months, before he can be placed under house arrest.
Culpable homicide in South Africa means a person was killed unintentionally, but unlawfully. During his trial, Pistorius maintained he shot Reeva Steenkamp by accident, mistaking her for an intruder.
The athlete was also given a three-year suspended sentence for a firearms charge.
From the BBC:
Pistorius showed little reaction to the sentence other than to wipe his eyes before being led away.
Dup De Bruyn, a lawyer for the Steenkamp family, told Reuters that “justice was served”, although he believed Pistorius would probably serve two years.
Pistorius’s uncle, Arnold, said: “We accept the judgment. Oscar will embrace the opportunity to pay back to society.”
He appealed to the media to “accept the ruling of court and let us move forward in this process and give us some degree of dignity and privacy”.
He said the family would support and guide the athlete as he served his sentence.
Pistorius will be evaluated to decide where he carry out his sentence based on his disability.
SOURCE: BBC,CNN | PHOTO CREDIT: Getty | VIDEO SOURCE: News Inc.
