Oscar Pistorius — Reeva Steenkamp Murder

On February 14, 2013, Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius, the South African Olympic and Paralympic sprinter known as the "Blade Runner," shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model, law graduate, and reality television personality, at his home in the Silver Lakes Estate in Pretoria, South Africa. Pistorius fired four rounds from a 9mm pistol through the locked door of his bathroom, striking Steenkamp in the head, arm, and hip. She died at the scene.

Pistorius was born on November 22, 1986, in Sandton, South Africa. He was born without fibulae in both legs and had both legs amputated below the knee at eleven months old. Using carbon-fiber prosthetic running blades, he became the first double amputee to compete in the Olympic Games, running in the 400 meters and 4x400-meter relay at the 2012 London Olympics. He had previously won multiple gold medals at the Paralympic Games. He was one of the most famous athletes in the world and a powerful symbol of the possibility of overcoming physical disability.

Reeva Steenkamp, born on August 19, 1983, in Cape Town, South Africa, was a successful model and aspiring television presenter who had recently appeared on the reality show "Tropika Island of Treasure." She and Pistorius had been dating for approximately three months at the time of her death.

Pistorius claimed that he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder. He stated that he woke in the middle of the night, heard sounds in the bathroom, believed someone had broken in through the bathroom window, and fired through the bathroom door without identifying the person inside. [The prosecution argued that Pistorius and Steenkamp had been in an argument before the shooting, pointing to phone records and witness testimony about sounds of screaming from the house before the shots](https://apnews.com/article/oscar-pistorius-murder-trial-reeva-steenkamp-south-africa).

[The case generated enormous international media attention — South Africa's history of violent crime was cited by the defense to explain Pistorius's fear-based reaction, while the prosecution argued that the evidence contradicted his version of events](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/dec/03/oscar-pistorius-found-guilty-of-murder-by-south-african-appeals-court). The trial was broadcast live, becoming one of the most watched legal proceedings in South African history.

Neighbors testified to hearing a woman screaming before the gunshots, which contradicted Pistorius's claim that he fired before realizing Steenkamp was in the bathroom. The ballistics evidence presented at trial showed that Pistorius fired four Black Talon hollow-point rounds in a tight grouping. Forensic evidence showed that Steenkamp was standing behind the door facing it when she was shot, suggesting she may have been aware of the threat.

[The Pistorius case highlighted issues of gender-based violence in South Africa, which has one of the highest rates of femicide in the world](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-67877958). Reeva Steenkamp's mother, June Steenkamp, became an advocate for domestic violence awareness in the aftermath of her daughter's death, founding the Reeva Steenkamp Foundation.

Pistorius's trial began on March 3, 2014, in the Pretoria High Court before Judge Thokozile Masipa. South Africa does not use jury trials for criminal cases; the verdict was determined by Judge Masipa with the assistance of two assessors.

[On September 12, 2014, Judge Masipa found Pistorius not guilty of murder but guilty of culpable homicide](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/09/12/oscar-pistorius-trial-blade-runner-found-guilty-of-culpable-homicide/), ruling that the prosecution had not proved beyond a reasonable doubt that Pistorius intended to kill Steenkamp specifically. She sentenced him to five years in prison on October 21, 2014.

[On December 3, 2015, the Supreme Court of Appeal overturned the culpable homicide conviction and found Pistorius guilty of murder](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/dec/03/oscar-pistorius-found-guilty-of-murder-by-south-african-appeals-court), ruling that Judge Masipa had applied the legal doctrine of dolus eventualis incorrectly.

On July 6, 2016, Judge Masipa sentenced Pistorius to six years in prison for murder — a sentence widely criticized as lenient. [The Supreme Court of Appeal subsequently increased the sentence to 13 years and 5 months on November 24, 2017](https://www.cnn.com/2017/11/24/africa/oscar-pistorius-sentence/index.html).

[Pistorius was released on parole on January 5, 2024](https://www.npr.org/2024/01/05/1222810912/oscar-pistorius-parole-reeva-steenkamp), having served nearly nine years. His release generated significant public controversy. He is subject to parole conditions and community supervision.