South African Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius has asked the courts to force prison authorities to consider him for parole, claiming he has served half of his 13-year sentence for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
Pistorius, 35, shot and killed Steenkamp, a model, while she was in the bathroom in the early hours of Valentine’s Day 2013. He said he thought a burglar was hiding in his own bathroom when he shot through the door four times.
However, this did not convince the jury and he was found guilty of murder.
He was initially sentenced to five years in prison for involuntary manslaughter, which was extended to six years in July 2016.
The state later appealed for a longer sentence, and the Supreme Court of Appeals extended the sentence to 13 years and five months.
Last year the same court ruled that his sentence should be backdated to October 2014, when he began serving his sentence nearly eight years ago.
To be considered for parole in South Africa, an offender must first serve half of his sentence. Pistorius and his lawyers argue that this means he was eligible for parole in February last year.
South African Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius (pictured in court during a 2016 hearing) has asked the courts to force prison authorities to consider him for parole after serving half of his 13-year sentence for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp has served.
Pistorius (left, London 2012 Olympic Games competitor), 35, shot and killed Steenkamp (pictured right with Pistorius in 2012), a model, while she was in the bathroom in the early hours of Valentine’s Day 2013
His attorney, Julian Knight, told AFP the athlete is seeking an order to force Gauteng Supreme Court authorities to hold a parole hearing.
But the Atteridgeville prison, where he is currently being held, says the Court of Appeals made conflicting judgments.
South Africa’s Department of Correctional Services has said it is also seeking a court ruling to determine when his sentence officially began.
“It’s a motion to force the parole board to hold a parole hearing,” Knight said. “That doesn’t mean he needs parole, but that he needs to be considered,” Mr. Knight said.
A hearing date has not yet been set, he said, refusing to give further details.
In July, the prison confirmed that a meeting between Pistorius and Steenkamp’s parents had taken place the previous month.
The encounter was part of Pistorius’ rehabilitation, which is also a requirement for applying for parole.
Attorney Tania Koen said in June that Pistorius and Barry Steenkamp met in person on June 22 as part of a so-called victim-perpetrator dialogue.
Pictured: Barry Steenkamp, father of Reeva Steenkamp, leaves the High Court in Pretoria, South Africa June 14, 2016 following the Oscar Pistorius sentencing hearing
It gives victims of crime or their families the opportunity to meet with offenders if they wish, before the offender is eligible for parole.
When Barry is happy with the outcome of the talks and believes that his daughter’s killer is genuinely repentant. It was not clear at the time whether he was happy with it.
Last year, the Steenkamps spoke of their agony when Pistorius wrote them a letter after being eligible for parole. “June and I, we were speechless,” Barry Steenkamp, Reeva’s father, said at the time.
Pictured: Oscar Pistorius leaves the High Court in Pretoria, South Africa, on June 15, 2016 following his sentencing hearing. Oscar Pistorius met with the father of Reeva Steenkamp, the woman he shot in 2013, in June as part of his parole process
Pistorius was born with a congenital condition that led to both his legs being amputated below the knee as a baby.
Pistorius, known worldwide as the “Blade Runner” because of his carbon-fiber prosthesis, became the first double amputee to compete in the Olympics when he attended the 2012 London Games, a year before he shot Steenkamp.
However, his image as one of the sport’s most inspirational figures was shattered when he shot 29-year-old Steenkamp multiple times through a toilet door at his home in the early hours of Valentine’s Day 2013.
He claimed he thought she was a dangerous intruder but was convicted on a charge akin to second-degree murder for acting so recklessly by firing his 9mm handgun through the toilet door.