Oscar Pistorius jailed for six years for Reeva Steenkamp's murder
The athlete could have faced a minimum of 15 years
Oscar Pistorius has been sentenced to six years in prison for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in 2013.
Under South African law he could have faced the usual 15-year minimum sentence for murder but Judge Masipa said there were “substantial and compelling reasons” for the sentence.
The 29-year-old will have to serve at least half the prison sentence before being eligble for parole. He has already served a year after being sentenced to five years in prison for manslaughter in 2014.
June Steenkamp, Reeva's mother, is comforted as a South African appeals court convicted Oscar Pistorius of murder in 2015 | © PA Photos
He has spent the last nine months at his Uncle’s home in Pretoria.
Reeva was killed on Valentine’s Day in 2013 at the athlete’s home on Pretoria. He’s never denied shooting her through the bathroom door but insisted he mistook her for an intruder.
Speaking in court last month Reeva's dad Barry revealed he'd suffered a stroke because of the stress of the trial and spoke about how their family's lives had been changed since Reeva's tragic death.
He admitted that while his wife had forgiven Oscar due to her strong Christian faith, they both felt that justice should still be served and he should go back to jail.
"It's been very hard to forgive but Oscar has to pay for what he did".
Oscar's defence team said that he was a 'broken man' and last month the athlete removed his prosthetics to walk on his stumps in court to show his vulnerability.
A psychologist argued he should be hospitalised instead of jailed, arguing Oscar still suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder following the event.