Oscar Pistorius, the first amputee sprinter to compete at both the Paralympics and the Olympics, was sentenced to six years in prison for the 2013 murder of his girlfriend, model Reeva Steenkamp.
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Pistorius was found guilty of murdering Steenkamp by an appeals court last December.
She ordered a recess to enable prosecutors and Pistorius’ lawyers to decide if they wanted to appeal the sentence.
Ulrich Roux, a South African lawyer and commentator who is not involved in the Pistorius case, said it had opened a window for South Africans into how their justice system works, including cross-examination and how a judge reaches a decision.
Pistorius could be eligible for parole in three years, and he is expected to return to prison immediately.
If jailed on Wednesday, he would likely return to the hospital section of Kgosi Mampuru II prison in Pretoria, separated from regular inmates.
Pistorius stared straight ahead as Judge Thokozile Masipa began her lengthy delivery, going over the runner’s family history and recapping his psychological assessments.
He was released from the same jail last October after serving one year of a five-year term for culpable homicide – the equivalent of manslaughter.
The judge added: “He’s a fallen hero who has lost his career and is ruined financially”.
“The sentence that I impose on the accused… is six years’ imprisonment”.
However, she disagreed with the notion that Pistorius had failed to show remorse by noting that he had tried to apologize to the Steenkamp family.
Ms Steenkamp’s parents had previously expressed disappointment with the initial sentence, an opinion shared by many South Africans. Masipa said she saw no evidence that Steenkamp’s murder was a case of domestic violence, despite public perception that it was.
Ultimately, “mitigating circumstances outweigh the aggravating factors”, the judge said.
Pistorius shot his girlfriend four times through the bathroom door of his Pretoria residence on February 14, 2013.
He had his legs amputated below the knee as a baby.
The judge who decided on the punishment was the same one who first convicted Pistorius of manslaughter in 2014, though that ruling was reversed to murder by a higher court in 2015.
Pistorius’ attempt to overturn the upgraded murder conviction failed earlier this year.
But it will be at least six years before he gets back on track.
“It is an insult to women in this country”, Mofokeng said.
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There was no immediate response to the sentencing from the Steenkamp family.
