The ‘Blade Runner athlete who won gold at the 2012 Paralympics in London will be able to reapply for parole in August 2024, according to officials.
Oscar Pistorius’ 13-year-and-five-month sentence for killing Reeva Steenkamp will not be reduced by a parole panel.
Blade Runner applied for parole after serving half his term.
However, a parole board representative stated that the gold-medal winner’s request had been denied because he had not served the minimum time required for early release. They affirmed that he may reapply in August of 2024.
Before the hearing, Reeva’s mother, June Steenkamp, told that Oscar Pistorius lacked remorse and rehabilitation.
Tania Koen, an attorney for the Steenkamp family, told, “While we welcome today’s decision, there is no reason to celebrate.”
“We will continue to miss Reeva for the remainder of our lives. We believe in justice and wish for its continual triumph.”
Julian Knight, Pistorius’s attorney, stated that they would dispute the parole denial.
The 36-year-old is currently serving a 13-year and five-month sentence for the 2013 slaying of his fiancée in the early morning hours of Valentine’s Day.
Last August, the South African athlete applied for parole, saying he had “done everything possible to rehabilitate.”
In June 2022, The Reeva Rebecca Steenkamp Foundation confirmed that Pistorius and Barry Steenkamp had met as part of South Africa’s restorative justice program. Previously, a hearing had been canceled because Pistorius had not met with Ms. Steenkamp’s parents.
Before the murder, Pistorius was best known for his athletic prowess, having won gold at the London 2012 Paralympics and creating history as the first double amputee to compete alongside able-bodied Olympians.
On February 14, 2013, he shot and murdered his girlfriend in the bathroom of his Pretoria, South Africa, residence.
Pistorius claims the gunfire was accidental because he thought an intruder was in his home.
Four shots were fired through a locked bathroom door, striking Ms. Steenkamp, 29, in the cranium, hip, and arm.
Pistorius stated in court that he did not comprehend who was behind the door until he broke it down with a cricket bat.
However, the prosecution claimed that the murder was premeditated and that Pistorius shot Ms. Steenkamp following an argument.
Pistorius was initially acquitted of murder and found guilty of negligent homicide. (the equivalent of a manslaughter charge in the UK).
In 2014, he was given a five-year sentence and was eventually released and placed under house arrest.
A year later, the supreme court of appeal in South Africa reversed the conviction and deemed him guilty of murder.
“Shockingly too lenient,” his six-year sentence was raised to thirteen years and five months in an appeal.
