Pistorius released after serving nine years
South African athlete Oscar Pistorius has been released from prison on parole and is now at home, South Africa’s Department of Corrections said yesterday.
The announcement came around 8.30am local time (7.30pm NZT), indicating corrections officials had released the world-famous doubleamputee Olympic runner from the Atteridgeville Correctional Centre in the South African capital, Pretoria, in the early hours.
Pistorius has served nearly nine years of his murder sentence of 13 years and five months for killing girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day 2013. He was approved for parole in November.
Serious offenders in South Africa are eligible for parole after serving at least half their sentence.
The Department of Corrections said in a two-sentence statement announcing Pistorius’ release that it was “able to confirm that Oscar Pistorius is a parolee. He was admitted into the system of Community Corrections and is now at home.”
Pistorius was expected to initially live at his uncle’s mansion in the upscale Waterkloof suburb of Pretoria and a police van was seen parked outside the house.
Department of Corrections officials had said Pistorius’ release time would not be announced in advance and he would not be “paraded” because they hoped to keep him away from the media glare that has trailed him since he shot Steenkamp multiple times through a toilet door at his home in the predawn hours of February 14, 2013.
He will live under strict parole conditions until the rest of his sentence expires in December 2029.
Steenkamp’s mother June Steenkamp said in a statement yesterday that she had accepted Pistorius’ parole as part of South African law.
“Has there been justice for Reeva? Has Oscar served enough time? There can never be justice if your loved one is never coming back, and no amount of time served will bring Reeva back,” June Steenkamp said. “We who remain behind are the ones serving a life sentence.
“With the release of Oscar Pistorius on parole, my only desire is that I will be allowed to live my last years in peace with my focus remaining on the Reeva Rebecca Steenkamp Foundation, to continue Reeva’s legacy.”
The Department of Corrections has emphasised that the multiple Paralympic champion’s release — like every other offender on parole — does not mean that he has served his time.
Some of Pistorius’ parole conditions include restrictions on when he’s allowed to leave his home, a ban on consuming alcohol and orders that he must attend programmes on anger management and violence against women. He will have to perform community service.
Pistorius will also have to regularly meet parole officials at his home and correctional services offices, and will be subjected to unannounced visits by authorities. He is not allowed to leave the Waterkloof district without permission and is banned from speaking to media until the end of his sentence. He could be sent back to jail if in breach of any of his parole conditions.
South Africa does not use tags or bracelets on paroled offenders, so Pistorius will not wear any monitoring device, Department of Corrections officials said. But he will be constantly monitored by a department official and will have to inform the official of any major changes in his life, such as if he wants to get a job or move to another house.
Pistorius has maintained that he shot Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model and law graduate, by mistake. He testified that he believed Steenkamp was a dangerous intruder hiding in his bathroom and shot through the door with his licensed 9mm pistol in selfdefence.
Prosecutors said he killed his girlfriend intentionally during a latenight argument.
Steenkamp’s family did not oppose his parole application in November, although June Steenkamp said in a victim statement submitted to the parole board that she didn’t believe Pistorius had been fully rehabilitated and was still lying about the killing.
Before the killing, Pistorius was held up as an inspiring role model after having both legs amputated below the knee as a baby because of a congenital condition. He became a champion sprinter on his carbonfibre running blades and made history by competing at the 2012 London Olympics.
But his murder trial destroyed his image. He was accused of being prone to angry outbursts and acting recklessly with guns, while witnesses testified about altercations he had with others, including an argument in which he allegedly threatened to break a man’s legs.
Pistorius was first convicted of culpable homicide — a charge comparable to manslaughter — and sentenced to five years in prison for killing Steenkamp. After appeals by prosecutors, he was found guilty of murder and had his sentence increased, although that judgement by the Supreme Court of Appeal did not definitively rule that he knew it was Steenkamp behind the toilet door.
Pistorius was first sent to prison in
2014, was released on house arrest in
2015 during an appeal and was sent back to prison in 2016. He was initially incarcerated at the maximum security Kgosi Mampuru II Prison in Pretoria but was moved to Atteridgeville early in his sentence because it is better suited to holding disabled prisoners.