Oscar Pistorius: prosecutors seek longer jail sentence
South Africa’s national prosecuting authority says it will appeal ‘shockingly too lenient’ sentence for murder of Reeva Steenkamp
South African prosecutors will appeal against Oscar Pistorius’ six-year sentence for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, which they described as “shockingly too lenient”.
When he was sentenced earlier this month, Pistorius’ lawyers said the Paralympic athlete would not appeal against the term, criticised by many activists as too short.
High court judge Thokozile Masipa said she believed there were “substantial and compelling” reasons why the athlete should not be handed the 15-year minimum sentence for murder, including his obvious remorse and the fact he believed Steenkamp was an intruder.
In a strongly worded statement on Thursday the National Prosecuting Authority said “the sentence of six years imprisonment, in all the circumstances, is disproportionate to the crime of murder committed [and] shockingly too lenient”.
The NPA said the sentence was “an injustice and has the potential to bring the administration of justice into disrepute”, adding that it would file papers to apply for leave to appeal on Thursday.
Pistorius shot Steenkamp, a model and law graduate, in the early hours of Valentine’s Day in 2013, saying he mistook her for a burglar when he fired four times through the door of his bedroom toilet.
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