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| Prosecutor Describes Pistorius as a Self-Centered Bully | Prosecutor Describes Pistorius as a Self-Centered Bully |
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| Oscar Pistorius, the South African athlete accused of murdering his girlfriend, faced new questions on Thursday from a dogged prosecutor intent on depicting him as a narcissistic bully who routinely berated her and recklessly carried a loaded gun everywhere he went. | Oscar Pistorius, the South African athlete accused of murdering his girlfriend, faced new questions on Thursday from a dogged prosecutor intent on depicting him as a narcissistic bully who routinely berated her and recklessly carried a loaded gun everywhere he went. |
| “It’s all about I. It’s all about Mr. Pistorius,” the pugnacious state prosecutor, Gerrie Nel, told the judge and observers gathered in the courtroom in Pretoria, South Africa, where the murder trial is being held. Referring to Mr. Pistorius’s girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, he added, “Reeva believed you treated her very badly.” | |
| The televised trial has offered two starkly competing narratives of the world’s most famous disabled athlete. In the one, Mr. Pistorius, 27, a double-amputee Paralympian, is a loving boyfriend who, vulnerable without his prosthetic legs, accidentally shot Ms. Steenkamp, 29, from outside a locked bathroom door in his Pretoria home as he tried to fend off what he believed were intruders. In the other, he is a temperamental and gun-loving hothead who killed Ms. Steenkamp in a violent rage after an argument, and then dissembled to cover his tracks. | The televised trial has offered two starkly competing narratives of the world’s most famous disabled athlete. In the one, Mr. Pistorius, 27, a double-amputee Paralympian, is a loving boyfriend who, vulnerable without his prosthetic legs, accidentally shot Ms. Steenkamp, 29, from outside a locked bathroom door in his Pretoria home as he tried to fend off what he believed were intruders. In the other, he is a temperamental and gun-loving hothead who killed Ms. Steenkamp in a violent rage after an argument, and then dissembled to cover his tracks. |
| On Thursday, Mr. Nel, whose aggressive style has earned him the nickname Pit Bull, sought to puncture Mr. Pistorius’s testimony that his relationship with Ms. Steenkamp, a law school graduate and reality TV star, was loving. | On Thursday, Mr. Nel, whose aggressive style has earned him the nickname Pit Bull, sought to puncture Mr. Pistorius’s testimony that his relationship with Ms. Steenkamp, a law school graduate and reality TV star, was loving. |
| During an earlier cross-examination, he had reduced Mr. Pistorius to tears by showing the court a video of Mr. Pistorius shooting a watermelon and causing it to explode and then juxtaposing that with a photograph of Mr. Steenkamp’s bloodied head, with her brains pouring out. | During an earlier cross-examination, he had reduced Mr. Pistorius to tears by showing the court a video of Mr. Pistorius shooting a watermelon and causing it to explode and then juxtaposing that with a photograph of Mr. Steenkamp’s bloodied head, with her brains pouring out. |
| Mr. Nel is revered for his toughness in his native South Africa, where he has been a prosecutor for three decades. In 2008, he was arrested on trumped-up fraud charges by 20 officers while investigating a former national police commissioner, according to accounts in the South African media. The charges were eventually dropped, and he went on to win a corruption conviction against the commissioner, in part by rattling him with an endless barrage of verbal attacks and questions. | Mr. Nel is revered for his toughness in his native South Africa, where he has been a prosecutor for three decades. In 2008, he was arrested on trumped-up fraud charges by 20 officers while investigating a former national police commissioner, according to accounts in the South African media. The charges were eventually dropped, and he went on to win a corruption conviction against the commissioner, in part by rattling him with an endless barrage of verbal attacks and questions. |
| Using what appeared to be similar tactics on Thursday, Mr. Nel read out cellphone text messages, including an exchange in which Mr. Pistorius mocked Ms. Steenkamp for speaking in “annoying” accents. In one episode, he told her to stop chewing gum in public. In another, Mr. Nel said, Mr. Steenkamp objected to Mr. Pistorius’s playing a rap song whose lyrics include an expletive and the words “Don’t Kill My Vibe.” | Using what appeared to be similar tactics on Thursday, Mr. Nel read out cellphone text messages, including an exchange in which Mr. Pistorius mocked Ms. Steenkamp for speaking in “annoying” accents. In one episode, he told her to stop chewing gum in public. In another, Mr. Nel said, Mr. Steenkamp objected to Mr. Pistorius’s playing a rap song whose lyrics include an expletive and the words “Don’t Kill My Vibe.” |
| He asked Mr. Pistorius why a review of text messages had not yielded a single exchange of “I love you” between them. “I never got the opportunity to tell Reeva that I loved her,” Mr. Pistorius replied wistfully. | He asked Mr. Pistorius why a review of text messages had not yielded a single exchange of “I love you” between them. “I never got the opportunity to tell Reeva that I loved her,” Mr. Pistorius replied wistfully. |
| Mr. Pistorius has denied a charge of premeditated murder, which carries a minimum jail term of 25 years. He says he shot Ms. Steenkamp by mistake. | Mr. Pistorius has denied a charge of premeditated murder, which carries a minimum jail term of 25 years. He says he shot Ms. Steenkamp by mistake. |
| Mr. Nel returned to the day of the killing, Feb. 14, 2013, challenging Mr. Pistorius’s argument that he had acted in self-defense. He said it was inconceivable that Mr. Pistorius had not seen Ms. Steenkamp get out of bed and go to the bathroom before he shot her. “You see, Mr. Pistorius, your version is a lie.” | Mr. Nel returned to the day of the killing, Feb. 14, 2013, challenging Mr. Pistorius’s argument that he had acted in self-defense. He said it was inconceivable that Mr. Pistorius had not seen Ms. Steenkamp get out of bed and go to the bathroom before he shot her. “You see, Mr. Pistorius, your version is a lie.” |
| Mr. Pistorius, appearing far more composed than he was during previous testimony, stood by his version of the night’s events: he had assumed that Ms. Steenkamp was still in bed when he drew his gun. | Mr. Pistorius, appearing far more composed than he was during previous testimony, stood by his version of the night’s events: he had assumed that Ms. Steenkamp was still in bed when he drew his gun. |
| Earlier, the prosecutor asked Mr. Pistorius to explain why he had waited months to offer an apology to Ms. Steenkamp’s family, as he did on the first day of his testimony this week. The trial is being heard by a judge and two officials known as assessors; there are no jury trials in South Africa. | Earlier, the prosecutor asked Mr. Pistorius to explain why he had waited months to offer an apology to Ms. Steenkamp’s family, as he did on the first day of his testimony this week. The trial is being heard by a judge and two officials known as assessors; there are no jury trials in South Africa. |
| Apart from the murder charge, Mr. Pistorius also faces charges related to firearms possession, and on Thursday the prosecution sought to portray him as a trigger-happy gun enthusiast whose loaded weapon was never far away, even when he was swimming. In one case, he is accused of shooting a gun out of the open sunroof of a car. In another, he is accused of firing a handgun in a busy restaurant when there were children nearby. | Apart from the murder charge, Mr. Pistorius also faces charges related to firearms possession, and on Thursday the prosecution sought to portray him as a trigger-happy gun enthusiast whose loaded weapon was never far away, even when he was swimming. In one case, he is accused of shooting a gun out of the open sunroof of a car. In another, he is accused of firing a handgun in a busy restaurant when there were children nearby. |
| When questioned about the episode at the restaurant, Mr. Pistorius said he had not pulled the trigger, although he conceded that the gun had gone off. Mr. Nel shot back sarcastically that his account was a “miracle.” | When questioned about the episode at the restaurant, Mr. Pistorius said he had not pulled the trigger, although he conceded that the gun had gone off. Mr. Nel shot back sarcastically that his account was a “miracle.” |
| Mr. Nel also questioned Mr. Pistorius as to why he kept a loaded gun and ammunition in his bedside table rather than storing it securely in a safe in his home. | Mr. Nel also questioned Mr. Pistorius as to why he kept a loaded gun and ammunition in his bedside table rather than storing it securely in a safe in his home. |
| Mr. Pistorius replied that he kept a loaded gun at all times because of fears for his personal safety. | Mr. Pistorius replied that he kept a loaded gun at all times because of fears for his personal safety. |
| At one point during his testimony, Mr. Nel snickered. That prompted a rare interjection from Judge Thokozile Matilda Masipa, who seemed to be addressing the prosecutor and the gallery but whose comments could be heard far and wide, as the trial has become a global spectacle. | At one point during his testimony, Mr. Nel snickered. That prompted a rare interjection from Judge Thokozile Matilda Masipa, who seemed to be addressing the prosecutor and the gallery but whose comments could be heard far and wide, as the trial has become a global spectacle. |
| “You possibly think this is entertainment,” the judge said. “It is not.” | “You possibly think this is entertainment,” the judge said. “It is not.” |