PRETORIA, South Africa - The murder trial of Oscar Pistorius, set to open Monday, marks the start of a dramatic new chapter in the life of the
double-amputee athlete who ran at the Olympics and became a global star before
he shot his girlfriend to death.
Cheap Islanders Jerseys China .
Prosecutors charged the 27-year-old Pistorius with murder in Reeva Steenkamps
death and say it was with premeditation. They say they will seek a life sentence
if Pistorius is convicted, the sternest punishment available in South Africa.
South Africa no longer has the death penalty. The intense public interest in the
Pistorius trial is shown by the launching Sunday night of a 24-hour cable
channel devoted to covering the court case. If convicted on the murder charge,
Pistorius could be sent to prison for at least 25 years before the chance of
parole, the minimum time someone must serve if given a life sentence in South
Africa. He would be older than 50 before he could be released. The state says
Pistorius intentionally killed Steenkamp at his home in the pre-dawn hours of
Valentines Day last year by shooting her through a toilet door after an
argument. Pistorius denies murder and says he killed his girlfriend by mistake
when he fired four times through the door thinking there was a dangerous
nighttime intruder on the other side. A lesser sentence is possible if Pistorius
is found guilty of murder but without premeditation. He also could be convicted
of culpable homicide, South Africas version of manslaughter in which someone is
killed through negligence. Pistorius claims he was acting in self-defence
against what he believed at the time was a threat to his life. As well as
murder, Pistorius faces a second charge of illegal possession of ammunition for
bullets found at his Pretoria house that he allegedly didnt have proper
licensing for. Prosecutors say he also will be indicted Monday with two more gun
charges relating to him allegedly shooting in public on two separate occasions
before Steenkamps killing. The serving of an updated indictment to Pistorius in
court is expected to be the first move at the trial at Pretorias high court. He
has not yet been formally served with the papers that include all four charges
against him, although his lawyers have had the papers and details of the
additional gun charges since last year, prosecutors say. The gun charges
reportedly relate to him allegedly shooting out the sunroof of a car in one
incident and another when he allegedly fired a gun inside a restaurant,
apparently by mistake. Those incidents happened in the court jurisdiction of the
city of Johannesburg, not where Steenkamp was killed in Pretoria, and
prosecutors applied to have the two charges included and heard at his murder
trial. Female judge Thokozile Masipa will ultimately pronounce the champion
runner innocent or guilty and will decide on any sentence. South Africa has no
trial by jury. Parts of the trial will be broadcast on live television, both in
South Africa and across the world, and hundreds of reporters are expected to
descend on North Gauteng High Court in the South African capital for the start
of the trial. The 24-hour cable channel devoted solely to the trial will
continue until the case is finished. The trial will deal with the bloody killing
of a 29-year-old model and law graduate, but also the issue of gun ownership and
South Africas problem of violent crime, which Pistorius says was the reason why
he kept his licensed 9 mm handgun under his bed. Pistorius says his fear of
crime was why he fired four shots through the door, hitting Steenkamp three
times — in the head, elbow and hip. Prosecutors maintain he was simply angry
with her after an argument. Members of Pistorius family will likely attend the
trial, as they did on his previous court hearings. His uncle, Arnold Pistorius,
sister Aimee and brother Carl are all also listed as state witnesses. "We love
Oscar, and believe in him, and will be standing by him throughout the coming
trial," Arnold Pistorius said in a statement over the weekend. For the first
time, members of Steenkamps family will also be in the courtroom according to a
family statement that her mother June and others would be at the trial. The
parents and close relatives of Steenkamp did not attend any of Pistorius
previous court appearances. "All we are looking for is closure and to know that
our daughter did not suffer on that tragic Valentines Day," Steenkamps parents
said in a statement this month and days before the one-year anniversary of the
shooting that stunned South Africa.
Cheap New York Islanders
Jerseys . Even if he is shooting 38 per cent from the field overall this
season, the Utah Jazz rookie always feels like his final shot is going in.
Adidas
John Tavares Jersey .Y. -- Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa and
Mark McGwire will have less time to remain eligible for the Hall of Fame ballot
under changes made Saturday.
http://www.cheapislandersjerseys.com/ .C. United to a 4-1 victory over short-handed FC Dallas on Saturday night.The
Winnipeg Jets didnt get any good news on the injury front on Wednesday.
Evander Kane, who has missed four games with an lower body injury, will not be
back for at least the next few games. Defenceman Zach Bogosian remains on
injured reserve with a groin strain and is likely out for the next two weeks.
Fellow blueliner Paul Postma hhas begun to do some light skating but remains out
with a blood clot in his leg.
Cheap
Adidas NHL Jerseys. He will be reassessed in a month. Forward Jim Slater,
who underwent sports hernia surgery, is expected to be out longer than Postma.
The Jets return to action on Thursday at home against the Colorado Avalanche.
(TSN Jets, 6:30pm ct/7:30pm et)
Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
