PRETORIA, South Africa — A woman screamed and then there was silence, according to South African prosecutors pressing a premeditated murder case against Oscar Pistorius.
Next, the indictment says, witnesses heard gunshots and more screaming at the home of the Paralympic champion, who says he shot his girlfriend by mistake on Valentine’s Day.
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The sequence of events outlined Monday could bolster an argument that the double-amputee Olympian was intent on killing Reeva Steenkamp after an altercation and was not reacting fearfully to what he thought was an intrusion in his home, as he has said. Prosecutors revealed a list of more than 100 witnesses, some of whom live in the gated community where she was killed.
Pistorius wept and prayed in court as he held hands with his brother and sister before being served with the indictment. The athlete will face an additional charge of illegal possession of ammunition when his trial starts on March 3.
The indictment in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court yielded new details about how prosecutors will pursue a case that has gripped the world because of the celebrity status of Pistorius, who overcame his disability to become a global phenomenon, only to see his name tarnished by his role in a violent death. The timing of the indictment was melancholic because Steenkamp would have celebrated her 30th birthday Monday.
The main charge carries a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment with a minimum of 25 years in prison if Pistorius is convicted. The prosecution’s allusion to a possible fight between the couple at Pistorius’ villa before the shooting raises the possibility of a motive.
Pistorius denies committing murder and says he mistook Steenkamp for a dangerous nighttime intruder. He says he thought she was in bed when he fired four shots through the locked toilet door, and only shouted at her to call the police before realizing what had happened. Steenkamp was hit three times by the shots.
Prosecutors also said in the indictment papers that Pistorius shot “with the intention to kill a person,” and even if his story is found to be true, he was still guilty of murder. That secondary argument seemingly allows for the possibility that Pistorius could escape the more serious charge of premeditated murder, but still be convicted of murder without premeditation, which carries a sentence of 15 years in prison.The Associated Press
Oscar Pistorius cries as he prays with his sister Aimee and brother Carl in the magistrates court in Pretoria, South Africa, on Monday.
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