Olympic athlete Oscar Pistorius speaks with relatives after sentencing at the High Court in Pretoria, South Africa, on July 6, 2016.
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South African Paralympic gold medallist Oscar Pistorius was sent to prison for six years yesterday for the 2013 murder of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, the latest twist in a trial that has gripped the world.
Masipa says the former athlete is a fallen hero who lost his career and has suffered financially but more than that he can not find peace for taking a life in the way he did.
The state had recommended that the disgraced athlete receive a sentence of no less than the 15-year minimum, after his initial five-year manslaughter conviction which he had started serving in October 2014 was upgraded to murder on appeal in December 2015.
Following the ruling, the 29-year-old was taken immediately to jail.
“Although a custodial sentence is a proper sentence, I am of a view that a long term of imprisonment will not serve justice in this matter”, Masipa said.
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.
However, his fame turned to infamy on Valentines Day 2013 when he shot Steenkamp dead in the bathroom of his home in South Africa.
Oscar Pistorius says goodbye to his sister Aimee Pistorius before being taken down to the cells.
They pushed for a non-custodial sentence that included management workshops and community service, Cosmopolitan reported, but Judge Masipa appeared to scoff at what she sarcastically called a “noble gesture”.
Steenkamp’s parents, Barry and June, were present in the courtroom, which was packed with relatives of both Pistorius and Steenkamp and other members of the public. She added of Judge Masipa: “First five years, now six years?”.
Later, Mr Steenkamp told the BBC that he was glad that the trial was over, though life would never be the same again.
Pistorius will be eligible to apply for parole after three years, according to legal experts.
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CNN reported that one prosecutor stated Pistorius and his girlfriend had argued earlier that evening, painting the shooting as motivated instead of accidental.
