Oscar Pistorius’ cross-examination by prosecutor Gerrie Nel, who is trying to prove the Olympian intentionally shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, concluded on Tuesday.
Nel continued to try to show that Pistorius willfully and knowingly shot Steenkamp in a fit of rage. "You fired four shots through the door whilst knowing that she was standing behind the door," Nel said to Pistorius, who was on the stand in the South Africa courtroom. "She was locked into the bathroom and you armed yourself with the sole purpose of shooting and killing her.”
In response, Pistorius said, “That is not true.”
Nel also wanted to know why Pistorius’ shouts and screams, according to neighbor accounts, seemed to stop after he fired the shots and opened the bathroom door to find Steenkamp slumped next to the toilet. “When I saw Reeva there, I was broken,” Pistorius testified. “I was overcome with a bunch of sadness.
Pistorius added that he’d said, “Baby, hold on. Jesus, please help me,”
After the conclusion of the cross-examination, Pistorius’ attorney Barry Roux took the opportunity to once again question his client. Roux pressed Pistorius to explain what he’d meant when he said killing Steenkamp was an accident.
"I mean the situation, and the situation as a whole, it wasn't meant to be," Pistorius said, adding, "I didn't think about pulling the trigger. As soon as I heard the noise, before I could think, I pulled the trigger.”
In an attempt to depict both the depth of Steenkamp’s feelings for Pistorius and the South Africa police force’s mishandling of evidence, the defense brought forth the Valentine’s Day card the model and law student had written for her boyfriend. The card, which police did not originally log into evidence, read, “Roses are red, violets are blue. I think today is a good day to tell you that I love you."
Roux previously stated that the defense would be calling a total of 14 to 17 witnesses in the trial, which is expected to stretch until the middle of May. Judge Thokozile Masipa will determine the verdict in Pistorius’ trial, as South Africa doesn’t have trial by jury. Masipa will also determine his sentencing.
– Chelsea Regan
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