Oscar Pistorius trial: Live updates as prosecution says athlete's evidence was 'devoid of any truth'
Prosecutor Gerrie Nel and defence barrister Barry Roux are giving their closing speeches as the Blade Runner's case comes to a close
Nel says inconsistencies in Pistorius' version of events turned it into a "farce".
He is going over evidence about the position of fans in the athlete's bedroom the night Reeva was shot.
He repeats that the accused "tailored his version".
10:05 am
9:55 am
The accused failed to demonstrate the crime scene was disturbed or tampered with, Nel says.
He says police would have to have been "lucky or clever" to put objects in places that would effect a defence they didn't know about.
9:46 am
The accused was an "appalling witness", says Nel.
He was "vague...responses argumentative".
His "mendacity was striking". He was "tailoring a version" and was more concerned with the implications of his answers than the truth.
"He was more concerned with defending for his life than entrusting the court with a truthful account of that morning."
9:43 am
Witness Mrs Van der Merwe says she heard a woman arguing at 1am - two hours before the shooting.
He moves on to say a security guard claimed Pistorius told him "everything is fine" after the shooting, whereas the athlete says he said "I'm fine".
Either way, Nel points out what he did not say was "help me, help me, please call the police".
9:39 am
The accused used his phone to make calls from the bedroom and kitchen, Nel says.
The defence denies calls were made from the bedroom.
Where were they made from, then? asks Nel.
9:36 am
Nel is now talking about the bullet holes in the bathroom door.
He says there is a "good grouping" of shots, not "wild" shots.
He adds that there was "aiming" when Pistorius shot at the door.
9:24 am
Nel says it is "fashionable" for a defendant to blame the state when they can't deal with the evidence.
9:20 am
The defence says Nel "repeatedly" called Pistorius a liar. The prosecutor disputes this, referring to the court record.
Nel says the court must have a "credible" version from the accused - it must be at least "reasonably possible true".
Without that, there is no defence.
9:16 am
Nel says the accused "tailored his version" of events.
It is important to notice that nowhere in the defence heads does it say the accused was a good witness, or that the court should accept his version.
The defence says: "The ability of the accused in the witness box must have been compromised."
That is an admission he was not a good witness, says Nel.
9:05 am
Nel looks at Pistorius' comments during his bail application.
He says the athlete then said he fired his gun because he believed intruders were in the house.
But he later said during trial he thought intruders were coming out of the bathroom after hearing a noise, and "before I knew it" he'd fired four shots.
That's three different versions of events - but he never said it was an accident or that he did not want to shoot.
8:59 am
The prosecutor says Barry Roux put it to witnesses that if a female screamed in the toilet, they wouldn't hear it at their house.
He says their own witness contradicted that statement.
8:54 am
Nel moves on to talk about the defence claim about the similarity of the sounds between a cricket bat hitting a door and gunshots.
He says the evidence to try and prove this was "weak".
8:49 am
He accuses Pistorius of having "anxiety on call" - when he needs someone to accept that he's anxious, he has "anxiety on call".
He adds that the defence started out by saying that they would call witnesses to testify Pistorius' screams sound like a woman.
There was no such witness, says Nel.
8:44 am
Nel is now talking about Pistorius' evidence,
"In keeping with the profession of the accused as an athlete, he was a relay runner.
"...If you drop that baton, if you stumble and lies cause you to drop that baton, you cannot complete the race. Without the baton of truth, you cannot complete the race.
"...He was a deceitful witness.... in essence [his evidence] was absolutely devoid of any truth."
He believes he is "always the victim of circumstance", and has "refused to take responsibility", says Nel.
8:40 am
Nel says the accused fired four shots with a powerful handgun, using high performance black talon ammunition, which "ripped through [Reeva's] body".
He says there was only one survivor that night - the accused.
Nel says: "One would expect him to give an honest account, an honest version of what happened."
8:36 am
He says we will argue the accused's version of events should be rejected.
If it is rejected, it means that there was "no perceived intruder whatsoever".
If that's so, Nel says, "the objective facts are devastating".
The deceased locked herself into the toilet at 3am, with her cell phone. She was standing upright, fully clothed, when she was shot three times.
8:32 am
Nel says Pistorius' team has presented two defences - the first, that Pistorius was not in control of himself when he shot Reeva.
But if the court finds he was in control, then they say he acted in self defence.
It's two defences you can never reconcile, Nel says.
8:30 am
The judge has arrived in court, and the session is beginning.
Gerrie Nel is on his feet.
He says Rumpole of the Bailey once said: "With all due respect to your ladyship I was thinking a criminal trial is a very blunt instrument for digging out the truth."
He says this is a case where they have had to work very hard - but they will get to the truth.
8:26 am
Oscar Pistorius' father Henke is also in court for the first time today.
Pistorius has arrived, and has been talking to his defence team.
Prosecutor Gerrie Nel will present his closing speech today.
8:09 am
The court in Pretoria is filling up, with the case due to get underway at 8.30am.
Reeva Steenkamp's father Barry is in court for the first time, along with her mother June.
Pistorius has also had his family present throughout much of the trial, including his sister Aimee and brother Carl.
However, Carl will be absent today after being seriously injured in a car crash over the weekend.
7:40 am
During the month-long break in the trial, it has been revealed that Pistorius has sold the house where Reeva was shot and killed.
He will use the cash to help pay for his legal fees.
Mining consultant Louwtjie Louwrens paid £250,000 – £120,000 less than the original price.
7:16 am
When the judge does retire, there are four possible verdicts she could return.
They are: premeditated murder, murder, culpable homicide, or not guilty.
Find out what each of those would mean for the athlete in detail here.
6:54 am
Good morning, and welcome to our live coverage of the Oscar Pistorius trial.
The case is set to resume at 8.30am this morning after a month long break, with the prosecution and defence teams due to set out their closing arguments over the next two days.
Pistorius, who has been on trial since March, denies murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp at his flat in the early hours of Valentine's Day last year. He says he mistook her for an intruder when he shot her through the bathroom door.
But the prosecution claims he killed her following a row.
After the closing arguments have been presented today and tomorrow, Judge Thokozile Masipa is expected to adjourn the case, and could take up to a month before delivering her verdict.
We'll be bringing you updates from the court room throughout today.
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