Oscar Pistorius - Sentencing - 6.13.2016

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Hello all - it's been a long time eh. Even the fonts look different!

From reading just now on DS it would seem that she cannot give the home imprisonment option as that only applies to sentences of 5 years or less. I read elsewhere that the State will be going for the full 15 year minimum and will appeal if it is less than 8 years. OP and his team will need to provide mitigating circumstances as to why the 15 year minimum should not be imposed.

Interesting aside that Carl P has gone off on holiday to India and Aimee P has moved to London so neither will be there to support him.

PS This was meant to be a reply to Dexter but came out a a new post. Everything's changed!

We're still here my friend.

Now I wonder why everyone has left Oscar. Did he confess to anything. Or did he curse them out and they now realize the ungrateful guy that he is?

I guess we will see. Good find though.
 
I just hate hearing the minimum is 15. But the state will appeal anything below 8 years.

This scares me because obviously the minimum isn't 15.

I guess minimum and mandatory minimum are 2 different things. And now Massipa has been dragged through the mud.

And she will not take people questioning her integrity lightly. So she will probably find a way to maneuver the law in Oscars favor once again. Jmo.

She is playing chess while we are thinking this is checkers. Jmo.

I have to agree with Lemonmousse here in that the SCA, whilst praising her, were scathing about Pistorius and his plethora of defences. She got it wrong but she's a journeyman judge promoted way beyond her abilities and those expected of a high court judge.

I think she'll be mindful of the SCA's "tone" and sentence him close to the full 15 years less timed served. I also think Roux will convince her to reduce it further with another plethora of reasons beyond any sane person's understanding. For Roux, that's what his instructions are this week. To try and give compelling reasons why the minimum mandatory sentence should be reduced. I think she'll be less ready to listen this time after having her fingers burnt so publicly.
 
FYI
http://www.insidethegames.biz/artic...t-tv-interview-ahead-of-sentencing-for-murder
Oscar Pistorius has recorded an interview with British channel ITV - ahead of his sentencing. He was interviewed at his uncle's home and has given his first media interview since the shooting. It is due to be aired on June 24. ITV has released a statement confirming the one-off show entitled Oscar Pistorius: The Interview, which will feature a one-on-one with the athlete by investigative journalist Mark Williams-Thomas.

http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/N...ath-to-address-misconceptions-family-20160609
Oscar's first TV interview since Reeva's death to address misconceptions – family
2016-06-09 21:12
Oscar Pistorius gave the interview "...to address some of the "misconceptions that have remained unchallenged", says the family". Pistorius's uncle Arnold said: "... ITV would be able to provide the family with a voice"...
 
I have to agree with Lemonmousse here in that the SCA, whilst praising her, were scathing about Pistorius and his plethora of defences. She got it wrong but she's a journeyman judge promoted way beyond her abilities and those expected of a high court judge.

I think she'll be mindful of the SCA's "tone" and sentence him close to the full 15 years less timed served. I also think Roux will convince her to reduce it further with another plethora of reasons beyond any sane person's understanding. For Roux, that's what his instructions are this week. To try and give compelling reasons why the minimum mandatory sentence should be reduced. I think she'll be less ready to listen this time after having her fingers burnt so publicly.

Lol. Masipa got it wrong?

I guess you never seen the men that she has put away for big years that have done less than Oscar. JMO

Masippa was just paid off or she was making higher friends within the judicial realm happy.

Jmo. I truly think that someone called her for a favor and she obliged. Jmo.

Because her record was supposedly known as being extra hard on men who have violated or killed women. Jmo.

The press act like she didn't mess around with cases like these.

But now she supposedly was very understanding and sympathetic.

So I truly can not state that Massipa only made a mistake and now she is willing to correct it. Jmo.

Btw. Even with culpable homicide. Massipa could have given him 15 years if she wanted.

But she settled for a 5 year sentence when she knew that he would be out in 1.

So her mixing up the law wasn't the problem in my eyes.

Her problem, imo. Was that she didn't make sure that she gave him a sentence long enough the first time around as where he wouldn'tbe eligible to be released after 1 year. Jmo.

Massipa knew exactly what she wanted to do. And it obviously didn't include sentencing Oscar to any real time at all. Jmo
 
I have been away so long I don't know what's going on in this case! Time to catch up!

Did Zwiebel ever return?
 
Welcome back everyone. It's great to see old familiar faces again.

Aggravating factors
If violence is involved, aggravating factors may be the degree and extent of the violence used, the nature of any weapon, the brutality and cruelness of the attack, the nature and character of the victim, including whether the victim was unarmed, or helpless.

Nel will use all of these. He can also add that OP pleaded not guilty and was prepared to fight all the way to the ConCourt together with lack of remorse. His behaviour since the murder certainly shows a lack of remorse as he got a new girlfriend, was out and about socialising with criminals and got into a fight plus an altercation with someone at a nightclub and was told to leave the club.

Mitigating factors
Roux can use the following in mitigation: First offence and participating in anger management courses and psychotherapy (both of which he was ordered to do) while he was in prison. However, like OP, he’ll offer up a plethora of excuses notably psychological assessments done by people of their choice. It’s a given that time served will be deducted. I’ve only read of him doing community service twice, not that it’s been ongoing from when it started. As for being confined for half a day in the mansion since the SCA overturned the CH verdict to one of murder, if it was anyone else they would have been incarcerated during this time so I’ll be outraged if that comes into it.

The mandatory minimum sentence for murder is 15 years, however ...

If "substantial and compelling circumstances" are present to justify a lesser sentence, the court is permitted to deviate from the prescribed sentence as long as the judge provides reasons for the deviation on the record. This is not an unusual occurrence in SA.

In addition to the mandatory minimum sentence, the mandatory minimum sentencing regime also restricts the ability of judges to suspend parts of custodial sentences they impose. The Criminal Procedure Act provides that a court, after it convicts a person for a crime for which a prescribed minimum sentence is applicable, may suspend up to five years of the prescribed sentence on the basis of various conditions, including compensation, community service, submission to correctional supervision, good behaviour, or any other condition that it deems fit. The mandatory sentencing regime prohibits the suspension of a mandatory minimum sentence.

Hypothetically Masipa could reduce the 15 year sentence to 10 if she finds substantial and compelling circumstances (IMO there are none) and then deduct the year already served leaving a balance of 9. In my eyes the minimum he should get is 14, i.e. 15 less 1 year served.

Bring it on.
 
On the question of parole ...

"The parole board has a wide discretion to grant parole, although the law puts limits in the case of more serious offences.

Offenders sentenced to more than two years (but less than life) in prison must serve half their sentence before being eligible for parole”.

http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/Os...frica-20140516

And the following from the SA Criminal Procedure Act, 1977

276B. Fixing of non-parole-period

(1)(a) If a court sentences a person convicted of an offence to imprisonment for a period of two years or longer, the court may as part of the sentence, fix a period during which the person shall not be placed on parole.

(1)(b) Such period shall be referred to as the non-parole-period, and may not exceed two thirds of the term of imprisonment imposed or 25 years, whichever is the shorter.
 
Hey JJ :seeya: Thanks for this! My co-author will be at court all week, so I'll be sharing some pics with you guys.
 
Morning everyone. I have to miss most of the proceedings so am relying on you guys to keep me updated.

I wonder what "health" issues Roux will exaggerate to make sure the murderer serves as little time as possible. It's hard to believe how much freedom he's had (given his conviction) and I can't see him accepting anything longer than the absolute minimum without putting up a strong fight. Reeva's family have been in limbo while OP has been free, so I really hope he gets the maximum sentence and serves his time with the minimum of whining. He should have been in prison awaiting appeal, not living in luxury.
 
Barry Bateman ‏@barrybateman
#OscarPistorius proceedings scheduled to start at 9:45am. BB
 
From this CNN article:

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/06/13/world/oscar-pistorius-sentencing-hearing/index.html

A defense source told CNN that Pistorius is a "broken man," and they would have put him on the stand to defend himself, but he is psychologically incapable of it (we will have to wait and see if that turns out to be the case). It will be the first time the public gets a good look at Pistorius since sentencing part one. The defense will likely focus on the media coverage and public treatment of Pistorius as one of their arguments.
On the prosecution side, we may see a family member or close friend of Steenkamp brought as a witness in what could be a harrowing testimony
.[/I]

Seems like he won't be taking the stand.
 
Hello everyone.

It's nice to have the forum open again to discuss things and it will be good to finally get some 'closure' on this case.

I'm interested to see whether Pistorius testifies or not - I somewhat doubt it, but it would be interesting and far more of an indicator as to how he's doing than a controlled and edited TV interview. I wonder whether Gerrie Nel has been able to see his TV interview and if he might be able to use it against Oscar in some way?

I'm not optimistic that he will get anything close to the 15 year minimum sentence however. My guess is that it will be around 10 years minus time served, but we'll see how the arguments play out.
 
From this CNN article:

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/06/13/world/oscar-pistorius-sentencing-hearing/index.html

A defense source told CNN that Pistorius is a "broken man," and they would have put him on the stand to defend himself, but he is psychologically incapable of it (we will have to wait and see if that turns out to be the case). It will be the first time the public gets a good look at Pistorius since sentencing part one. The defense will likely focus on the media coverage and public treatment of Pistorius as one of their arguments.
On the prosecution side, we may see a family member or close friend of Steenkamp brought as a witness in what could be a harrowing testimony
.[/I]

Seems like he won't be taking the stand.

Oddly, he was perfectly "psychologically capable" of standing up and giving his version when Roux was questioning him.....he only became "broken" when directly faced with the contradictions & improbabilities of his story. Even Masipa noted that.

He's run out of excuses, as far as I can see. Roux is going to have his work cut out.
 
Just want to say hi to all the old and new faces, here.

Thanks for the heads up on the live link!!!
 
I'm not looking forward to seeing/hearing Masipa, again. I'm sure she's a very nice woman in real life but, as a judge in this trial, she really drives me nuts.
 
Aislinn Laing ‏@Simmoa
Pistorius family member tells me they hope he will escape with a non-custodial sentence,which technically can happen due to degree of murder. "The facts haven't changed, they have just applied a different term (murder) to what happened," the #OscarPistorius family member said.
 
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