Oscar Pistorius Trial: Everything You Need to Know About the First Week
March 7, 2014— -- At the end of the first week of the Oscar Pistorius murder trial, the court had heard explosive testimony from neighbors, first responders and a scorned ex-girlfriend, painting a picture of a paralympian who was careless with guns.
The trial also marked the first time Pistorius, 27, and the family of his slain girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, 29, had come face to face since the model was killed Valentine's Day morning last year.
The Blade Runner has sobbed, covered his ears and hung his head as witness after witness has testified about the night he shot his girlfriend. Pistorius said he mistakenly believed she was an intruder.
Michelle Burger, whose bedroom is 580 feet from Pistorius' home according to the prosecution, was the first witness grilled by the prosecution and defense.
The university lecturer told the court she heard a woman's "blood-curdling screams" the night of the shooting.
Burger testified she heard one shot fired and then a pause, followed by three rapid shots thereafter, suggesting Pistorius stopped shooting before he fired once again at his girlfriend.
Pistorius' attorney, Barry Roux, was aggressive at times as he tried to poke holes in Burger's story. He suggested the female she heard screaming was actually Pistorius, who he said "screams like a woman" when he's nervous.
Read More: Oscar Pistorius and the 'Screams Like A Woman' Defense
Perhaps the most evocative testimony of the week came from Johan Stipp, a radiologist, who testified that he went to Pistorius' house after hearing shots and screams early Valentine's Day morning last year.
Stipp said he noticed a wound in Steenkamp's right thigh, in her upper arm and in the right side of the head, and there was brain tissue around the skull.
As Pistorius listened to Stipp's testimony, he shook slightly as he sobbed, his hands covering his ears.
The athlete knelt by his girlfriend's side, praying, Stipp testified. "Oscar was crying, saying 'Please let her live.' He was saying he would dedicate his life to God if she will only live," Stipp said.
Read More: Oscar Pistorius Prayed 'Please Let Her Live,' Witness Testifies
Pieter Baba, a security guard in Pistorius' luxury gated community, testified today that he called the athlete after getting reports of shots fired.
While the emotion of the night of the shooting took center stage at the murder trial, Pistorius' dirty laundry was also aired when his scorned ex-lover took the stand.
