The murder trial of amputee sprinter Oscar Pistorius, who competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics, began today in Pretoria, South Africa.
Pistorius shot his girlfriend, model Reeva Steenkamp, on February 14, 2013, either on purpose or by accident. He has pleaded not guilty to one charge of premeditated murder, one firearms charge, and two gun charges from previous incidents. If Pistorius is found guilty of murder, he could be imprisoned for life. If he is found not guilty, he will still face a charge of “culpable homicide” for his negligence.
The athlete fired four shots through a looked door to a toilet room, thinking the person inside was an intruder, in order to protect himself and Steenkamp.
“I felt a sense of terror rushing over me,” Pistorius stated in his court affidavit. “There are no burglar bars across the bathroom window and I knew that contractors who worked at my house had left the ladders outside.”
“It filled me with horror and fear of an intruder or intruders being inside the toilet. I thought he or they must have entered through the unprotected window. As I did not have my prosthetic legs on and felt extremely vulnerable, I knew I had to protect Reeva and myself.”
The first witness, neighbor Michell Burger, took the stand today and described what she heard the night of the incident.
“It was very traumatic,” Burger said. “You could hear it was blood-curdling screams. You can’t translate it into words. The anxiousness in her voice, and fear. It leaves you cold.”
“She screamed terribly and she yelled for help,” Burger added. She stated she heard a man shouting for help before shots were fired.
Burgler’s testimony contradicts Pistorius’ version of what occurred as he never described hearing a woman scream. He stated he thought his girlfriend was in bed.
There will be more witness testimonies on Tuesday. The trial is expected to last a few weeks and is being broadcast live in South Africa and around the world. Judge Thokozile Masipa will determine Pistorius’ fate since South Africa does not have trial by jury.
