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| Oscar Pistorius trial: Verdict due on Thursday | |
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| Paralympian Oscar Pistorius is due to hear the verdict of his murder trial this week, bringing to a close a sensational and televised trial six months after it began. | Paralympian Oscar Pistorius is due to hear the verdict of his murder trial this week, bringing to a close a sensational and televised trial six months after it began. |
| The double-amputee athlete will learn his fate on Thursday 11 September, 19 months after the 27-year-old shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, 29. | The double-amputee athlete will learn his fate on Thursday 11 September, 19 months after the 27-year-old shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, 29. |
| The trial has spanned six and a half months, during which Pistorius has always maintained he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder and panicked, shooting through the bathroom door out of fear. | The trial has spanned six and a half months, during which Pistorius has always maintained he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder and panicked, shooting through the bathroom door out of fear. |
| Judge Thokozile Matilda Masipa has the final decision on whether or not Pistorius will be found guilty of premeditated murder – a charge which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years. | Judge Thokozile Matilda Masipa has the final decision on whether or not Pistorius will be found guilty of premeditated murder – a charge which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years. |
| Judge Masipa, 66, who has previously worked as a social worker and crime reporter, has presided over the trial since March. | Judge Masipa, 66, who has previously worked as a social worker and crime reporter, has presided over the trial since March. |
| Defence and prosecution teams wrapped up their final arguments on 7 August, retiring to allow the judge to make her decision. | Defence and prosecution teams wrapped up their final arguments on 7 August, retiring to allow the judge to make her decision. |
| Pistorius tweeted on 8 August: “Thank you to my loved ones and those that have been there for me, who have picked me up and helped me through everything.” | Pistorius tweeted on 8 August: “Thank you to my loved ones and those that have been there for me, who have picked me up and helped me through everything.” |
| The athlete’s defence counsel Barry Roux says his client is neither liable nor negligent in the death of Steenkamp, with the killing following an “involuntary reflexive response”. | The athlete’s defence counsel Barry Roux says his client is neither liable nor negligent in the death of Steenkamp, with the killing following an “involuntary reflexive response”. |
| “He is trained as an athlete, to react to a sound,” Mr Roux said. “And he’s standing there, with his finger on the trigger. | “He is trained as an athlete, to react to a sound,” Mr Roux said. “And he’s standing there, with his finger on the trigger. |
| “If I were to stand behind him [in such a situation], his finger on the trigger, and he is in a fearful state, and I clap my hands, I am very happy to argue that on some occasion, he may pull the trigger.” | “If I were to stand behind him [in such a situation], his finger on the trigger, and he is in a fearful state, and I clap my hands, I am very happy to argue that on some occasion, he may pull the trigger.” |
| However, the prosecution, Gerrie Nel, has argued that Pistorius could have tried to wake his girlfriend and usher them out of the house to safety, but instead obtained a gun and shot whoever was in the toilet, which amounts to pre-planned murder he says – an assertion Pistorius denies. | However, the prosecution, Gerrie Nel, has argued that Pistorius could have tried to wake his girlfriend and usher them out of the house to safety, but instead obtained a gun and shot whoever was in the toilet, which amounts to pre-planned murder he says – an assertion Pistorius denies. |