5°c Partly cloudy
16°c Isolated showers
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Olympic runner sobs in court
Pistorius faces life sentence in death of model
South African athlete Oscar Pistorius reacts in court in Pretoria, South Africa, Friday at his bail hearing in the murder case of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. (INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPERS LTD SOUTH AFRICA-STAR)
The killing of model Reeva Steenkamp shocked South Africa. (CP)
Oscar Pistorius is revered for overcoming his disability. (MCT)
PRETORIA, South Africa -- In a courtroom, not an Olympic stadium, there was no click-click-click of Oscar Pistorius' prosthetic limbs. His only sound Friday was loud, uncontrollable sobs as prosecutors charged him with premeditated murder in the shooting death of his model girlfriend.
"Take it easy," Chief Magistrate Desmond Nasir told the Olympic star-turned-murder-defendant as his father, Henke, and his brother, Carl, reached out to touch his shoulder to comfort him.
The 26-year-old Pistorius, the double-amputee sprinter who won world acclaim by competing in last summer's London Olympics, did not speak or enter a plea. He held his head and wept as he heard the charge, which carries a life sentence.
A statement released later by his family and agent said Pistorius disputed the murder charge "in the strongest terms."
The track star's arrest in the Valentine's Day killing of 29-year-old model Reeva Steenkamp shocked South Africa, where Pistorius was a national hero dubbed the Blade Runner for his high-tech prosthetics and revered for overcoming his disability to compete in the London Games.
Prosecutor Gerrie Nel said he would pursue a charge of premeditated murder against Pistorius in the slaying of Steenkamp, a model with a law degree who had spoken out on Twitter against rape and abuse of women.
She was discovered in a pool of blood before dawn Thursday by police called to Pistorius' upscale home in a gated community in the South African capital of Pretoria.
Authorities said she had been shot four times, and a 9 mm pistol was recovered at the home.
Throngs of reporters, photographers and videographers filled the brick-walled Courtroom C in Pretoria Magistrate's Court, where Pistorius appeared. Nasir's first ruling focused on the press as he dismissed requests from the state broadcaster and a private television station to air the hearing live.
Nasir also ordered that no photographs be taken while court was in session. That left dozens of photographers kneeling less than a metre from the sobbing Pistorius to simply stare at a man many had photographed previously sprinting on his famous carbon-fibre blades.
Police said investigators had conducted an autopsy on Steenkamp's body but the results would not be released.
-- The Associated Press
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition February 16, 2013 A20
More World
- Back to Top
- Return to World
More World
(1 of 15 articles for today)
Mistrial in penalty phase of Arias case sets up whole new proceeding to decide punishment
4:08 AM 0PHOENIX - As jurors in Jodi Arias' murder trial filed one by one from the courtroom after a dramatic five ...
Poll
Most Popular World
- Brave woman tried to calm London attackers and reasoned with them before police came
- Youths in Stockholm burn down restaurant, torch more than 30 cars in 4th night of rioting
- Survivor: Washington state bridge disappeared in a 'big puff of dust'
- Muslim hard-liners ID suspect seen in video after British soldier killed in London
- Gay teen charged for having younger girlfriend
- 'An eye for an eye'
- Man shot to death in Fla. while being questioned in Boston Marathon bombing investigation
- Students, teachers reunite for first time after school was destroyed by Oklahoma tornado
- At Cannes Film Festival, Jerry Lewis still not laughing at female comedians
- Polish man gets quick face transplant in what doctors say was life-saving decision
- Massive tornado roars through Oklahoma City suburb, killing at least 51
- Brave woman tried to calm London attackers and reasoned with them before police came
- Search for survivors of Oklahoma tornado nearly complete, as homeowners confront devastation
- Man shot to death in Fla. while being questioned in Boston Marathon bombing investigation
- Phone cracked? Cool
- US woman credits 'mother's instincts' in chase of 4-year-old daughter's abductor
- Polish man gets quick face transplant in what doctors say was life-saving decision
- Muslim hard-liners ID suspect seen in video after British soldier killed in London
- Umbrella-gate stirs outrage
- US zoo looking into conception mystery after birth of anteater; no male in pen
- Amanda Berry, 1 of 3 women freed after held captive in Ohio home, arrives at sister's home
- Massive tornado roars through Oklahoma City suburb, killing at least 51
- Friendship with bomb suspect, complex chain of events leads to 3 being charged
- Police vow to solve shooting that wounded 19 people during Mother's Day parade in New Orleans
- Missing Pa. woman, last seen dropping off kids for school in 2002, surfaces in Fla.
- Cleveland police: Ohio captive suffered 5 miscarriages after being beaten and starved
- Jodi Arias convicted of first-degree murder, says she prefers death penalty
- Brave woman tried to calm London attackers and reasoned with them before police came
- Neighbours: Man in custody comforted missing girl's mom, helped search for missing US women
- Search for survivors of Oklahoma tornado nearly complete, as homeowners confront devastation
- Survivor: Washington state bridge disappeared in a 'big puff of dust'
- Phone cracked? Cool
- The pope and the devil: Francis' obsession with Satan leads to suspicion he performed exorcism
- FBI: Man killed had become violent during questioning on Boston bombing
- Brave woman tried to calm London attackers and reasoned with them before police came
- 84-year-old New Mexico woman on oxygen tank indicted on charges she was trafficking drugs
- 5.7-magnitude quake shakes Northern California; no reports of injuries
- Phone cracked? Cool
- Ray Manzarek, keyboardist and founding member of rock group The Doors, dies at 74 from cancer
- Survivor: Washington state bridge disappeared in a 'big puff of dust'
- Remote Alaska volcano continues to erupt, with lava fountains, ash plumes
- Argentina's 'dirty war' dictator dies
- Massive tornado roars through Oklahoma City suburb, killing at least 51
- Shady characters: Cookie Monster, Elmo accused of aggressive behaviour in Times Square
- Hatchet-wielding hitchhiker who intervened in California attack arrested in NJ homicide
- US woman credits 'mother's instincts' in chase of 4-year-old daughter's abductor
- Up to 60 people injured when car drives into Va. parade; medical emergency possible cause
- 'Coronation Street' actor William Roache charged in UK over alleged rapes in 1967
- Coroner: 5-year-old boy shoots 2-year-old sister in US with rifle he got as a gift
- Hitler ate well, his food taster recalls
- Black bear wanders into LA-area suburbia, chases swimmers from pool, strands kids in class
- Phone cracked? Cool
- Female guards, rapidly growing in numbers, at heart of U.S. prison scandal
- US tourists swim for nearly 14 hours after boat sinks near St. Lucia
- IBM makes movie about a little boy - a very little boy - by pushing molecules around
- Friendship with bomb suspect, complex chain of events leads to 3 being charged
- Missing Pa. woman, last seen dropping off kids for school in 2002, surfaces in Fla.
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.