Blade runner, Pistorius to get parole

Authorities say Oscar Pistorius is scheduled to be freed on parole August 21 after serving about 10 months in jail for the killing of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp.

Pistorius, the South African double amputee sprinter, who has competed in the Paralympics and Olympics, claimed that he mistook Steenkamp, 29 a model and television presenter for an intruder, firing four shots through a locked bathroom door.

“He has been recommended for correctional supervision on August 21,” Zach Modise, commissioner of the correctional services, told AFP.

“Normally, this will mean house arrest with one hour of free time each day. As he progresses, we will relax these conditions.”

But the proposed release date has provoked an angry reaction from the Steenkamp’s parents, who Pistorius shot on Valentine’s Day in 2013.

“Incarceration of 10 months for taking a life is simply not enough,” her parents June and Barry Steenkamp said a statement released online.

“We fear that this will not send out the proper message and serve as the deterrent it should.”

The statement added that the family had “forgiven” Pistorius and did “not seek to avenge” their daughter’s death.

Pistorius, 28, was found guilty last year of culpable homicide — a charge akin to manslaughter — and sentenced to five years in prison for shooting Steenkamp.

Ripples… without borders, without fears

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now