Oscar Pistorius faces fifth day of cross-examination after yesterday breaking down in court three times
OSCAR PISTORIUS was today accused of arming himself with the “sole purpose” of killing Reeva Steenkamp as she spoke to him from the locked toilet cubicle. The claims were made by prosecutor Gerrie Nel as he summed up his cross-examination.The athlete has now stepped down from the witness box after five days of tough questioning. Nel, nicknamed 'The Pit Bull', this morning claimed Steenkamp was in a rush to leave the house after the couple argued on 14 February last year. Pistorius denied the accusation, insisting that he mistook her for a dangerous intruder when he fired four shots into the toilet door. The Paralympian also revealed the contents of a Valentine’s Day card written by Steenkamp before she died.
Here are the key moments of today's testimony;
10.50am: Roux asks Pistorius to read the Valentine’s Day card he received from Reeva on the night she was killed. The envelope says “Ozzy” with hearts on it. The outside of the card says “Roses are red, violets are blue.” Inside it says: “I think today's a good day to tell you that I love you.” Roux finishes his re-examination.
The judge and her assessors ask a few more questions. Pistorius confirms that his toilet light was not working and that Steenkamp had access to his alarm controls. He then steps down as a witness.
10.40am: Pistorius's defence lawyer Barry Roux has begun his re-examination. He asks Pistorius what he means when he talks about an “accident”? Pistorius says: “I meant the situation as a whole. It wasn't meant to be.” Roux asks him if he “consciously” pulled the trigger. Pistorius says no.
The athlete is again asked to describe the emotions he felt before he fired the gun. “Terrified,” he says. “I feared for my life. I was scared, I was thinking about what could happen to me and to Reeva, I was just extremely fearful, overcome with a sense of terror and vulnerability.”
Roux shows the court a police photograph, taken shortly after the one showing Steenkamp’s jeans inside out on Pistorius’s bedroom floor. This one shows Steenkamp’s jeans no longer inside out. Pistorius also confirms that he did not have access to any witness statements, including police statements, before he gave his initial bail affivdavit ..
9.55am: Nel sums up his cross-examination, telling Pistorius that his version is “not only untruthful, it is so improbable that it cannot be reasonably, probably true”. Nel says that based on the objective facts and the circumstantial evidence, the court will find - as an only reasonable inference - that:
- Reeva ate two hours before Pistorius shot and killed her.
- While Reeva was awake and eating, neighbour Estelle van der Merwe heard an argument.
- Four other neighbours heard Reeva’s "bloodcurdling" screams as she escaped from Pistorius.
- Pistorius shot four shots through the toilet door, knowing that Reeva was in there.
- Pistorius knew that she was talking to him. She was locked in the toilet and he armed himself with the sole purpose of shooting and killing her.
- Afterwards, Pistorius was overcome by what he had done because he intended to kill her.
Pistorius denied all of the accusations, except that he was
"overcome" by what he had done, but not because he had intended to kill
her.
9.50am: The prosecution repeatedly asks Pistorius
who should be blamed for him having shot Reeva. The athlete says he
believed there was a threat on his life, but says he does not blame
anyone. Nel asks: “Who should we blame for the black talon rounds that
ripped through her body?” The judge objects that this is the same
question and Nel subsequently changes the question to “Why did you have
black talon ammunition?” Pistorius says: “It is the type of ammunition
used for my firearm.”
9.30am: The prosecution turns to the phone call between Pistorius and security guard Pieter Baba after the shooting. Baba has previously told the court that he called Pistorius and was told “everything is fine”. However, the phone records showed that Pistorius first called Baba. Nel today suggests that Pistorius rang security by mistake and then told Baba “everything is fine” because he did not want security there. The Paralympian says he cannot remember speaking to him but this would not make sense as he had already called Johan Stander, who was involved in the administration of the estate, and medical assistance company Netcare to ask for help
9.10am: Nel shows the court a photograph of the toilet, including a large puddle of blood, taken by police just after the shooting. He asks Pistorius to explain exactly where Steenkamp was found. The athlete says Reeva was sitting on the floor to the right of the toilet (see below), where the magazine rack is in the picture, with her head on her shoulder.
Nel asks why Pistorius was screaming before he saw Steenkamp. “I was in a panic,” says the athlete. Then the prosecutor asks would he not have been in a “greater panic” when he saw her in the toilet. “I didn't know what the purpose of screaming would be,” says Pistorius. “I was overcome with sadness, I was crying.” He adds: “When I saw Reeva there, I was broken.”
9.00am: Pistorius is asked to make a swinging movement with the cricket bat against the toilet door in court. Previously, the state witness Colonel Johannes Vermeulen said Pistorius must have been on his stumps when he used a cricket bat to break down the toilet door. Pistorius shows the court how he hit the door. The athlete tells the court: “I am wearing prosthetic legs and this position is very comfortable.”
8.50am: Nel claims that it makes no sense for somebody as neat as Reeva to leave her jeans inside out on the floor, when all her other things were packed in her bag. Pistorius says she was already in her pyjamas when he got home. Nel suggests that it indicates that she had to take her jeans off “quickly” because of an argument and that she wanted to leave. Pistorius says this makes “no sense”, as she would not have taken off her own clothes and put on his if she hypothetically wanted to leave the house.
9.30am: The prosecution turns to the phone call between Pistorius and security guard Pieter Baba after the shooting. Baba has previously told the court that he called Pistorius and was told “everything is fine”. However, the phone records showed that Pistorius first called Baba. Nel today suggests that Pistorius rang security by mistake and then told Baba “everything is fine” because he did not want security there. The Paralympian says he cannot remember speaking to him but this would not make sense as he had already called Johan Stander, who was involved in the administration of the estate, and medical assistance company Netcare to ask for help
9.10am: Nel shows the court a photograph of the toilet, including a large puddle of blood, taken by police just after the shooting. He asks Pistorius to explain exactly where Steenkamp was found. The athlete says Reeva was sitting on the floor to the right of the toilet (see below), where the magazine rack is in the picture, with her head on her shoulder.
Nel asks why Pistorius was screaming before he saw Steenkamp. “I was in a panic,” says the athlete. Then the prosecutor asks would he not have been in a “greater panic” when he saw her in the toilet. “I didn't know what the purpose of screaming would be,” says Pistorius. “I was overcome with sadness, I was crying.” He adds: “When I saw Reeva there, I was broken.”
9.00am: Pistorius is asked to make a swinging movement with the cricket bat against the toilet door in court. Previously, the state witness Colonel Johannes Vermeulen said Pistorius must have been on his stumps when he used a cricket bat to break down the toilet door. Pistorius shows the court how he hit the door. The athlete tells the court: “I am wearing prosthetic legs and this position is very comfortable.”
8.50am: Nel claims that it makes no sense for somebody as neat as Reeva to leave her jeans inside out on the floor, when all her other things were packed in her bag. Pistorius says she was already in her pyjamas when he got home. Nel suggests that it indicates that she had to take her jeans off “quickly” because of an argument and that she wanted to leave. Pistorius says this makes “no sense”, as she would not have taken off her own clothes and put on his if she hypothetically wanted to leave the house.
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