Olympic Athlete Oscar Pistorius Found Guilty of Culpable Homicide

Most will remember when they first heard the name Oscar Pistorius. Pistorius was the feel good story of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, becoming the first amputee to participate in the games. The braces on his legs were an interesting plot twist that sponsors as well as fans stood in awe of. For the track portions of the Olympics, all eyes were clearly focused on the “Blade Runner,” and how he would fare against the competition of athletes with natural legs.

As the Olympics came to an end, Pistorius once again slid off the radar and returned back to his home in South Africa. This would only last a mere six-months until Pistorius’ name was flooded back into the media with murder charges as he was accused of shooting of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp.

The world was once again in awe of Pistorius, having admired him so much in the Olympics, only to find out that he shot his girlfriend through his bathroom door. Pistorius plead ‘not guilty’ to the charges and always maintained that he thought it was an intruder.

American legal analysts recreated the events of the night and most if not all thought that Pistorius must have acted intentionally. ‘Intention’ is an especially important detail when it comes to the South African laws regarding murder. There is a first-degree murder of sorts when the defendant acts with the intention and knowledge that death will occur. The second-degree is where the victim is killed but the defendant did not know that a death would occur.

South African judge, Thokozile Masipa said, "a reasonable person would have foreseen if he fired shots at the door, the person inside the toilet might be struck and might die as a result."

Although this sounds like there is intention and knowledge of death occurring, Masipa found that Pistorius did not know whom the specific person inside the bathroom was. This was the important detail that lead to Pistorius being charged with second-degree murder instead of first-degree, which comes with a 25-year sentence.

Most legal analysts were extremely surprised by the ruling, but one must remember that Pistorius is a celebrity, and there is always the chance that his status may have played a role. Pistorius will be sentenced in October. At that time the state will likely determine if they wish to appeal the verdict depending on how severe the punishment is.