'Blade Runner' Oscar Pistorius to be released from prison after murder of girlfriend
Oscar Pistorius, the former South African runner who competed in both the Olympics and Paralympics, was ordered to be released from prison Friday, more than 10 years after he shot and killed his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, at his home.
Pistorius is now set to be released from a South African prison on Jan. 5 after the court confirmed he had served the time necessary to make him eligible. Pistorius had been sentenced to 13 years and five months in 2016 for the murder of Steenkamp.
Pistorius, 37, was convicted of culpable homicide in Sept. 2014 after shooting Steenkamp, a South African model, four times on the morning of Feb. 14, 2013. Pistorius claimed he shot Steenkamp through a bathroom door in the middle of the night thinking she was an intruder.
A parade of sentencing and appeal hearings played out in the following years. He was sentenced to just five years in prison for the culpable homicide, but the country's Supreme Court overturned the culpable homicide charge and convicted him of murder in November 2015. But given just a six-year term for the murder, prosecutors appealed and he was later sentenced to 15 years in prison, less time served.
Having served half his sentence, Pistorius became eligible for parole in early 2023, however, he was denied on March 31.
He was to be next eligible for parole in August 2024. However, Pistorius' lawyer appealed the decision, saying the board did not take into account 16 months he spent in prison between July 2016 and November 2017, according to The Associated Press.
At the time his parole was denied, the Steenkamp family said in a statement: "While we welcome today’s decision, today is not a cause for celebration. We miss Reeva terribly and will do so for the rest of our lives. We believe in justice and hope that it continues to prevail."
The Steenkamp family's lawyer, Tina Koen, told reporters of Pistorius prior to the first parole hearing that Steenkamp's mother "doesn't feel that he's rehabilitated and hasn't told the truth" and should not be released.
Pistorius, who was born with a congenital defect that led to the amputation of both legs below the knee, ran with prosthetics in the 2012 Summer Olympics. He finished second in his heat of the 400 meters, but did not advance out of the semifinal. He also ran in the 4-by-400 meter relay, where the South African team finished eighth.
He is a six-time Paralympic gold medalist.
