Pistorius family accepts guilty verdict, wants privacy

By Hassan Isilow

PRETORIA

The family of South African Paralympian Oscar Pistorius has appealed to the media to respect their privacy after a court sentenced him to five years in jail on Tuesday for culpable homicide.

"We accept the judgment," Arnold Pistorius, the convicted man's uncle, told reporters outside the North Gauteng High Court.

Earlier Tuesday, Judge Thokozile Masipa sentenced Pistorius to five years in jail for culpable homicide of his model girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp.

She also slapped him with a three-year suspended sentence for negligent use of a firearm.

The 27-year-old Paralympian was convicted of murdering Steenkamp at his Pretoria home on Valentine's Day (February 14) of last year.

Pistorius fired four shots at the closed door of his bathroom, instantly killing Steenkamp, who he allegedly mistook for an intruder.

Last month, he was found guilty of culpable homicide and careless use of a firearm, which he had discharged earlier in a popular Johannesburg restaurant.  

Arnold said he hoped his nephew would start his own healing process once he began serving out his jail term.

"Oscar will embrace this opportunity to pay back to society," he said.

Pistorius looked calm and composed as he listened to the verdict – unlike his behavior at previous court sessions, when he had frequently broken down in tears.

After Masipa finished reading out the verdict, the court was adjourned.

Security personnel led Pistorius to a holding cell, from which he was later transferred to a prison located a few kilometers from the courthouse.

The Pistorius family, meanwhile, urged the media to move on.

"I appeal to you as the media to accept the ruling of the court and let us move forward in this process and give us some degree of dignity and privacy," said Arnold.

The high-profile case, which has gone on for six months, has drawn extensive national and international media coverage.

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