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Oscar Pistorius to be moved to house arrest next week Oscar Pistorius to be released from prison into house arrest next week
(35 minutes later)
Oscar Pistorius is to be released from prison and into house arrest next week, about a year after he was sentenced to five years for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. Oscar Pistorius is to be released from prison into house arrest next week, 12 months after he was sentenced to five years in jail for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
In a statement, South Africa’s department of correctional services said the Paralympian will be released on Tuesday and placed under correctional supervision. South Africa’s department of correctional services said the Paralympian would be released on Tuesday and placed under correctional supervision.
Pistorius was sentenced last year to five years in prison for killing Steenkamp on 14 February 2013. He was found guilty of culpable homicide – a charge equivalent to manslaughter – after saying during the trial that he shot his girlfriend through a locked bathroom door because he mistook her for an intruder.
A battle over his sentence ensued, and last week a parole hearing to decide if Pistorius should be released from prison early was postponed.
Related: Oscar Pistorius jailed for five years but ‘short’ sentence fiercely criticisedRelated: Oscar Pistorius jailed for five years but ‘short’ sentence fiercely criticised
He was due to be moved to house arrest in August after serving 10 months behind bars, but Michael Masutha, the justice minister, referred the matter back to the parole review board, sowing legal confusion and doubts over the release date. “The parole board considered all submissions, including the offender’s profile report, the directives of the parole review board and the submission of the victim’s family,” the correctional department said.
Pistorius faces a further test on 3 November when prosecutors will appeal to South Africa’s supreme court to try to secure a murder conviction and a stronger sentence. After a seven-month trial, Pistorius was convicted in September last year of killing Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day in 2013. He was found guilty of culpable homicide – a charge equivalent to manslaughter – after saying during the trial that he shot his girlfriend through a locked bathroom door because he mistook her for an intruder.
Steenkamp’s parents have opposed parole. The Paralympian’s lawyers had argued that he should have been released and granted house arrest in August after serving one-sixth of his jail term, but Michael Masutha, the justice minister, referred the matter back to the parole review board, sowing legal confusion and doubts over the release date.
After meeting last week, the parole board said it wanted to consult Steenkamp’s family over Pistorius’s possible release.
Related: June Steenkamp interview: ‘Now it’s crystal clear Reeva is never coming back’
Steenkamp’s parents say Pistorius killed their daughter on purpose and have previously contested any parole.
Pistorius’s family had accused officials of bowing to “political and media hype” in denying him parole.
“I do think correctional services have probably considered how unfairly he has been treated. He should have been released on August 21,” Brian Webber, a lawyer representing Pistorius, told AFP last week.
On 3 November prosecutors will appeal to South Africa’s supreme court to try to secure a murder conviction and a stronger sentence.