A COURT WILL hear Oscar Pistorius’s bail application next Tuesday.
The hearing was postponed today to give the defence team and the State more time to gather evidence. Both sides agreed to the delay.
Magistrate Desmond Nair also ruled that cameras would not be allowed to film the proceedings.
At the start of today’s hearing, the Paralympian broke down in tears with one local reporter stating he ‘sobbed uncontrollably’. The emotion came after an initial state of calm confidence, according to witnesses.
When he entered the box he was visibly shaking and the judge told him to “calm down…you need to relax”.
Pistorius had his head bowed as the charge was read out. He stands accused of murdering his model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in the early hours of St Valentine’s Day.
She was shot four times in the upper body and head with a 9mm pistol.
It is understood that Pistorius will remain in custody until the hearing on Tuesday, 19 February. He will be held in a police station cell and not prison. The athlete’s lawyers asked for him to be kept in a police cell because of the high-profile nature of the case but the magistrate expressed concern this would be showing preferential treatment. However, the State did not oppose the arrangement.
In an important revelation, prosecutors made it clear they were going to pursue a pre-meditated murder charge.
According to eNCA, the sprinter cried and “his whole body reacted” on hearing that news.
“The State isn’t buying any suggestion that this killing was an accident,” the station’s reporter added.
On the other side, the defence has asked for a schedule five, and not schedule six, application. For a Schedule 6 offence, the accused has to give evidence to satisfy the court that exceptional circumstances exist in which the interests of justice permit his release. For a Schedule 5 offence, the accused has to present evidence to satisfy the court that the interests of justice permit his release.
The Pretoria court room was packed with members of the public and media personnel today.
Dressed in a dark blue suit and covering his face, the 26-year-old was surrounded by family when being escorted from Boschkop police station.
The athlete became the first amputee to compete in the Olympics at London 2012 having previously enjoyed significant success at the Paralympic Games.
He won gold in the 4×400 relay at the most recent Paralympic event in London last year.
A congenital condition meant he had to have both legs amputated below the knee before he was aged one. Last year he was named by Time magazine as one of the world’s 100 most influential people.
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