South African Paralympian Oscar Pistorius, who went to jail for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in 2013, has been released on parole.
After 11 years behind bars, the athlete was officially released back into the world as of Friday. South Africa’s Department of Correctional Services confirmed as much in a statement, noting:
“Oscar Pistorius is now a parolee, effectively from 5 January 2024. He was admitted into the system of Community Corrections and is now at home.”
If you don’t recall, Oscar killed his 29-year-old partner on February 14, 2013. After shooting through the bathroom door at their home in Pretoria four times, the bullets killed the model and law school graduate. The double-amputee, known as “Blade Runner” because of his prosthetic legs, pleaded not guilty. During his trial, he insisted that he thought there was an intruder in the home. But the prosecutors had a different theory — that the couple had argued, and he intentionally killed Reeva in a fit of anger. Ultimately, he was convicted of culpable homicide or manslaughter — NOT murder — in 2014 and was sentenced to five years in prison.
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Unfortunately for him, the 37-year-old fought back with an appeal the next year — but the Supreme Court of Appeal ended up overturning the original conviction and found him guilty of murder this time! This meant he was sentenced to 13 years and five months in jail in 2016.
While the release is good news for him, it’s a hard reality for Reeva’s family. That’s especially true of her mother June Steenkamp, who released a statement per the BBC, saying in part:
“Has there been justice for Reeva? Has Oscar served enough time? There can never be justice if your loved one is never coming back, and no amount of time served will bring Reeva back. We, who remain behind, are the ones serving a life sentence.”
As for her own future, she expressed:
“My only desire is that I will be allowed to live my last years in peace with my focus remaining on the Reeva Rebecca Steenkamp Foundation, to continue Reeva’s legacy.”
June also fought back against the release in November’s parole board hearing, writing in a letter that she didn’t think the professional sprinter’s “huge anger issues” had been thoroughly addressed behind bars, per the BBC. She also said she was “concerned for the safety of any woman” who comes into contact with the convict. Oof.
The mourning mother even heartbreakingly noted that Reeva’s father and her husband, Barry Steenkamp, who died last year of what she thinks was a “broken heart,” left the world “utterly devastated by the thought that he had failed to protect his daughter.” So sad. We cannot imagine how hard this is for her loved ones.
As for Oscar, he tearfully admitted to the crime in 2016, telling REELZ before his sentence:
“I did take Reeva’s life, and I have to live with it. I can smell the blood. I can feel the warmness of it on my hands. And to know that that’s your fault, that that’s what you’ve done. […] And I understand the pain people feel that loved her and miss her. I feel that same pain, I feel that same hate for myself, I feel that same difficulty in understanding this. And I look back and I think – I always think, how did this possibly happen?”
He will finish the rest of his sentence in South Africa’s community corrections system, as decided after November’s hearing, Reuters reported. This means he’ll be under supervision until December 2029. Per the parole conditions, via BBC, he must report to a parole officer and is required to inform them if he moves or gets a job. He’s also required to attend gender-based violence classes and continue anger management therapy, a lawyer for the Steenkamp family confirmed, per Reuters.
Thoughts? Let us know (below)…
[Image via ESPN/YouTube & Daniel Deme/WENN]
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