Pistorius: "I shot her by mistake." Excuse me, four shots through a bathroom door is not a mistake

[monmouth3]

but murder. I have this dog awful feeling he's going to get a slap on the wrist for this because of his popularity, his amputations as a child and his "stardom"... Some of the defense I'm reading about this actually sickens me. I hope I'm wrong but as we all know, justice is different for the rich, the white and the very popular. They also found steroids in his house and "roid rage" has been mentioned. His father appears to be delusional on his guilt (understandably, I guess) but one wonders how this is going to play out in the end. At the very least he should spend life in jail..

[Blue_Tires]

1. No way he gets off for this...

He could have theoretically had a small chance if his GF was just a "regular" person, but she was a celebrity and a public figure as well...Her family will want blood for this....

[monmouth3]

2. I hope you're right, the constant injustice and easy sentencing for celebrities is sickening..n/t

[redqueen]

6. On BBC this morning they were pushing the 'he's not a threat, he should get bail' idea.

Nothing about the details. Which if what I've heard is correct include:
- he first shot her in the hip, in their bedroom
- his first call was to a lawyer
- after he shot her in the hip, she locked herself in the bathroom, after which strapped on his legs, followed her, and shot her through the door in the hand and face

This was no accident. He is a murderer.

[Are_grits_groceries]

12. Pistorious has money and

many sympathizers around he world.
He is a very real threat to flee.

[cali]

17. That's what his defense was pushing

but evidently the court is having none of it.

[redqueen]

21. Maybe the BBC aired rhe prosecutor's side at some point.

All I saw of the case this morning was the defense's pleas, apparently.

I hope you're right and the court refuses bail.

[muriel_volestrangler]

25. I don't think either side is saying she was shot in the bedroom

What we have is:

• Oscar Pistorius has given his account of the night his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp died at his house in Pretoria. In a statement read out by his lawyer, the Paralympic and Olympic star said the two were in bed asleep on Wednesday night when he got up and went to the balcony to close a sliding door and get a fan. He heard a noise in the bathroom and assumed it was an intruder, he said. Feeling vulnerable without his prosthetic legs, he got his gun and shot through the door, he said. He then saw that Steenkamp was not in bed, he said. He broke the bathroom door down with a cricket bat, he said; Steenkamp was still alive but died in his arms. He denied that he had murdered her, saying nothing could be further from the truth.

• The prosecution gave a different version of events. Prosecutor Gerrie Nel said there was an argument before the shooting, and laterPistorius got up from bed, put on his prosthetic legs, armed himself, walked seven metres to the toilet door and shot Steenkamp four times; three of the shots killed her. Even if he thought she was a burglar, it was still premeditated murder, Nel said. But he asked why a burglar would lock himself in the toilet.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2013/feb/19/oscar-pistorius-bail-hearing-live-coverage#block-51237c07b5796129ac9ed116

[redqueen]

27. Several sources are reporting a bullet casing was found in the bedroom. nt

[cali]

28. Yes they are. They're saying she was shot initially in the bedroom, in her hip,

fled to the bathroom and then was shot 3 more times through the door.

[muriel_volestrangler]

33. And yet, the prosecutor didn't say that in court

Who are the "they" saying it? The important person to listen to is a prosecutor in court. If there was evidence of shooting in the bedroom, don't you think the prosecutor would have mentioned it, seeing as it would destroy the claim that he thought she was still in the bed, and it was someone else in the toilet?

[Xipe Totec]

3. I'm not so sure anymore.

Through the door means he did not see the target; he was guessing.

I'll wait for the jury's verdict.

[Blue_Tires]

5. add in the fact that the door was locked and it starts to unravel fast

[Xipe Totec]

34. I just became aware that SHE was the one in the toilet, not him.

I had imagined him inside the bathroom and her outside, struggling to open the door. Fear panic, confusion...

Now I find that she was inside the bathroom with the door locked and he stood outside and fired in...

That's a whole different kettle of fish.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/olympics--lawyers-square-off-in-oscar-pistorius--bail-hearing-095441840.html

And there will be no jury; trial by jury was abolished in South Africa in 1969.

[monmouth3]

7. The police had been to the home a few hours earlier for a disturbance. This does not take

a mental giant to conclude trouble.

[redqueen]

11. It's also a pandemic.

The whole violence against women / men murdering their female partners or exes thing.

[Blue_Tires]

8. I see nothing distasteful about wanting justice for murder victims...

[redqueen]

9. With every kind of crime?

Seems to me that speculations about guilt is usually not controversial.

[monmouth3]

10. I guess it is just you. We are opining and discussing a news story. My decision on his guilt or

not will have no affect whatsoever.

[redqueen]

16. What other crimes are you uncomfortable discussing until after a verdict has been reached?

[G_j]

22. I am not uncomfortable discussing crimes

just deciding guilt or innocence from afar.
As I said, that's my own thing. I don't expect or want anyone to censor themselves.

[pipi_k]

13. I think it's

human nature to try and make sense out of something so senseless.

Speculation is going to happen, whether it's just in someone's mind, or out in the open on a discussion board.

And that's all this is. A discussion board. Not a jury. People are free to speculate and discuss, even if it means they think someone is guilty.

[madinmaryland]

20. We do a lot of quilting on DU!!

[Helen Reddy]

14. As of yesterday,

his major sponsors haven't pulled the plug.

Let's see now, Martina Navratilova lost ALL of her major endorsements. Her crime? being a lesbian.

[cali]

19. You are incorrect

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20130218/us-pistorius-shooting-sponsors/?utm_hp_ref=green&ir=green

That was posted 21 hours ago.

[Helen Reddy]

23. Well...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/southafrica/9877273/Oscar-Pistoriuss-sponsors-stay-loyal-in-wake-of-murder-charge.html

[cali]

29. That's according to Pistorius' AGENT. His agent.

Nike and Oakley have both issued statements. Hmmm. Who to believe?

[Helen Reddy]

30. Well....

News of the athlete’s lost endorsements came just hours after his agent told media that the companies would stand by Pistorius as details of the still-mysterious shooting continue to emerge.


This from NBC news.

Bottom line, he has lost his major endorsements.

[hlthe2b]

18. Sounds like the SA judicial system is being damned serious about this, given the charges & likely

denial of bail. Everything I have seen to date, suggests he is not about to "skate" if the facts are as it appears. In the US, the rich and celebrities frequently buy their freedom. I think we need to remember that not ALL countries are so worshipful, at the expense of justice.

[HappyMe]

24. I don't think this guy is going to

get away with this. I'm sure they realize he is a flight risk, so I don't think he will make bail.

SA has a judge and 2 magistrates presiding over trials. That eliminates the popularity contest from the trial.

[elfin]

26. Next up - it was steroid use

Turn in all his medals ala Lance. Thought he could get away with it due to fame. Now, not gonna happen.

[Dpm12]

31. Justice does

serve the rich. Remember the OJ Simpson trial. The fucker got away because he had a good lawyer, and frankly, was one of the biggest stars in the world

[catbyte]

32. Does the SA criminal justice system have juries or judges? Please excuse my ignorance.

That could make a difference. The prosecutors were pretty adamant that even if he thought he was shooting an "intruder", he still had no business shooting somebody trapped in a bathroom. Not credible. He's a much better athlete than a storyteller.

[muriel_volestrangler]

35. Judges

Who would decide whether Pistorius is guilty or not?

A judge sitting alongside two assessors – typically magistrates or retired magistrates.

Why no jury?

South Africa abolished the jury system in the 1930s because of racial politics. Only white people were allowed to sit on juries and there was no hope of black defendants being given a fair trial. There was debate about reviving juries after the transition to democracy in 1994 but, given South Africa's 11 official languages, it would have been prohibitively expensive to hire interpreters.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/feb/18/oscar-pistorius-legal-q-and-a