Double-amputee South African paralympian Oscar Pistorius already filed an appeal against his murder conviction. This was because the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) reversed his verdict from culpable homicide to murder. Moreover, Pistorius is to face a minimum sentence of 15 years.
According to Headlines & Global News, Pistorius was found guilty for murdering his model girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, in 2013 during Valentine's Day, mistaking her as an intruder hiding in the toilet in his home in Pretoria. He already served a one-year prison sentence for his previous conviction. The condemned athlete then got his legal team petitioning the Constitutional Court last Monday to argue that the court has gone way beyond its jurisdiction.
"The SCA unfairly discriminated against the applicant on the ground of his disability, vulnerability and anxiety, which is prohibited by section 9(4) of the Constitution," the petition said. It further argued that the putative private defence's legal requirements were not a question of law as referred to the SCA under Criminal Procedure Act (CPA) section 139. Thus, with respect, the SCA holds no statutory authority in interfering with either the factual or legal finding of putative private defence.
Belfast Telegraph further stated that Pistorius' lawyer, Andrew Fawcett, contests that Pistorius only misidentified Steenkamp as a burglar as he was on his stumps, making him anxious that led him to shoot and kill his girlfriend in 2013. The trial court, on one hand, found that Pistorius believed his life was in danger. On the other, the appeal court ignored this finding, making the South African sprint runner under house arrest in his uncle's home in Waterkloopf, said News Channel 9.
While the Constitutional Court decides if it will continue hearing the case, Pistorius' conviction remains the same. As for his sentencing, it is already scheduled for April 18. Whatever the decision may be, Pistorius' life will definitely be changed forever.
