Prosecutors Fail to Get Pistorius’ Sentence Doubled
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Jemal Countess/Getty Images(PRETORIA, South Africa) — The prosecution in the case against South African Olympic athlete Oscar Pistorius that asked the trial judge for permission to appeal his conviction on a charge of culpable homicide and his five-year sentence won one and lost one Wednesday.
Judge Thokozile Masipa granted permission for the state to appeal Pistorius’ conviction for culpable homicide, the equivalent of manslaughter in the U.S., in connection with the death of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day last year. Pistroius fired four shots through a locked bathroom door in his home, claiming he thought she was an intruder.
However, the judge Wednesday denied permission for the state to appeal Pistorius’ five-year sentence. The chief prosecution had asked for 10 years.
During the appeal of the culpable homicide conviction, prosecutors may come up with a new charge against Pistorius.
If Pistorius ends up being convicted of a more serious charge, he could get a new, longer sentence.
Pistorius, 28, was initally charged with murder for killing Steenkamp but Masipa ruled the state did noy produce enough evidence to warrant the charge. After his conviction for culpable homicide, she sentenced Pistorius last October to five years behind bars.
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