News / Africa
'Pistorius going to prison no matter what,' says legal expert
24 Mar 2014 at 06:41hrs | Views
Prosecutors in Oscar Pistorius' case have apparently done enough to put the South African sprinter behind bars whether he knew he was shooting his girlfriend or not, an expert has said.
Even if the double-amputee athlete convinces the judge in his case that he thought he was firing at an intruder, he could still receive as many as 10 years in prison for homicide, explained William Booth, a leading criminal defence lawyer from Cape Town.
Under South African law, shooting to kill is justified only in response to imminent danger, Booth said.
Pistorius, nicknamed the "Blade Runner" for his blade-like prosthetic legs, is accused of shooting girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp through a bathroom door in his plush Pretoria home.
"The legal question is: Can you shoot four shots in those circumstances? Even if you think there is an intruder in your house ... where there is no imminent danger, you can't," Booth said.
"Oscar admits to shooting four shots through a closed door that led into a very small area, the toilet," Booth said.
"Four shots into the toilet, you have to be sure you're going to hit someone. You must know you're going to kill that person, if not by a direct hit then by a ricochet."
The evidence thus far.
* Three neighbours said they heard a woman scream before and during the sound of gunshots.
* A police ballistics expert said the first shot hit Steenkamp in the hip and caused her to collapse but didn't immediately kill her. The second shot missed, meaning she likely had time to yell out.
* The pathologist who did the autopsy said it would have been "abnormal" for Steenkamp to not scream.
Pistorius is hoping that incompetent police work and testimony by his own forensic and ballistics experts will bolster his case.
But Booth said cop mistakes won't save the sprinter.
"If they didn't find Oscar on the scene and had to link him via fingerprints ... There would be more case for an acquittal."
But Pistorius has admitted that he fired the deadly shots.
"What more do you need if you're a prosecutor?" Booth said.
Prosecutors said they will likely wrap up their case with "four or five more witnesses."
Even if the double-amputee athlete convinces the judge in his case that he thought he was firing at an intruder, he could still receive as many as 10 years in prison for homicide, explained William Booth, a leading criminal defence lawyer from Cape Town.
Under South African law, shooting to kill is justified only in response to imminent danger, Booth said.
Pistorius, nicknamed the "Blade Runner" for his blade-like prosthetic legs, is accused of shooting girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp through a bathroom door in his plush Pretoria home.
"The legal question is: Can you shoot four shots in those circumstances? Even if you think there is an intruder in your house ... where there is no imminent danger, you can't," Booth said.
"Oscar admits to shooting four shots through a closed door that led into a very small area, the toilet," Booth said.
"Four shots into the toilet, you have to be sure you're going to hit someone. You must know you're going to kill that person, if not by a direct hit then by a ricochet."
The evidence thus far.
* A police ballistics expert said the first shot hit Steenkamp in the hip and caused her to collapse but didn't immediately kill her. The second shot missed, meaning she likely had time to yell out.
* The pathologist who did the autopsy said it would have been "abnormal" for Steenkamp to not scream.
Pistorius is hoping that incompetent police work and testimony by his own forensic and ballistics experts will bolster his case.
But Booth said cop mistakes won't save the sprinter.
"If they didn't find Oscar on the scene and had to link him via fingerprints ... There would be more case for an acquittal."
But Pistorius has admitted that he fired the deadly shots.
"What more do you need if you're a prosecutor?" Booth said.
Prosecutors said they will likely wrap up their case with "four or five more witnesses."
Source - NYDN
