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Author Topic: Oscar Pistorius, is accused of shooting his girlfriend to death.  (Read 88220 times)
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« Reply #120 on: April 16, 2014, 01:51:14 PM »

Accused Killer Oscar Pistorius And Reeva Steenkamp Were Fighting Before Her Death, Mom Claims
Oscar Pistorius and Reeva Steenkamp were fighting in the weeks up to her brutal shooting death her mother revealed in an explosive new interview.

The South African Blade Runner, 26, has been charged with the premeditated murder of his girlfriend, 29. She was shot four times and he claims he thought it was an intruder and didn’t realize he was shooting Reeva.


Her mother June Steenkamp appears in a UK Channel 5 Documentary talking about her daughter’s tumultuous relationship with Oscar.

She said Reeva called her from the car when Oscar was driving over the speed limit just a few weeks before her death.

“She was afraid, she was so afraid,” June said.

PHOTOS: Murdered Model Reeva Steenkamp

“She phoned me and she said, ‘Mummy I’m in the car with Oscar and he’s driving like a lunatic’. So I said will you just give him the phone.

“She gave the phone to Oscar straight away and I said hello. And he said ‘Mrs Steenkamp.’

“I said, listen, if you hurt my baby in any way I will have you wiped out. I didn’t mean murder him, I’m just saying, that’s what I said. And I know the friend that was in the car was a friend of Reeva and a friend of Oscar and he told me afterwards that Oscar slowed down immediately,” according to the Daily Mail.

PHOTOS: Oscar Pistorius Weeps In Court While Charged With Murder

Reeva’s mother said that wasn’t the only time her daughter said there was trouble in the relationship.

“A week or so later she phoned me, we chatted about this and that, little girl things. I said ‘how’s it going with Oscar?’ She said that ‘We’ve been fighting; we’ve been fighting a lot.

“She didn’t elaborate about what they’d been fighting about. She said, ‘We are fighting a lot.’ That’s what she said.

However, she said that she wasn’t as worried as she should have been for her daughter.

 
“I didn’t feel alarmed about that because men and women do fight don’t they, it’s part of a relationship but this is a very early relationship to be fighting.”

One of Reeva’s friends also said that they know about a fight Reeva and Oscar had where she took two days to “cool off.”



Gwyn Guscott recalled their conversation: “I know of one argument that she had with Oscar. I don’t know who started the argument but I do recall her saying to me that, ‘Gwyn, you know how I am, I’m not a person that likes arguments so I walk away. So I left and I took two days to cool off and just think about what had happened and then I tried to patch things up.’”

Her mother said she wants answers from Oscar about the night her daughter died.

“Why? Why did he shoot her? I want to know why he shot her. Because she must have been so afraid in the toilet, and somebody’s firing [a] gun, bullets through the door.


“And how terrified and already one bullet had hit her so she must have been in severe pain also, and I just feel why couldn’t I have warned her, or known something about this person – that they could be capable of doing something like that.

 

http://radaronline.com/


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« Reply #121 on: April 18, 2014, 08:40:25 AM »

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/04/18/the-tattered-defense-of-oscar-pistorius/?tid=hp_mm
The tattered defense of Oscar Pistorius
April 18, 2014

 
His testimony began, strangely, with an apology. The athlete, the first double-amputee to ever compete in an Olympics, told his dead girlfriend’s family he was sorry — a move that immediately struck some lawyers as odd. Apologies are normally reserved for parole hearings, not when an accused is still at trial. “If I had an accused come to me and say, ‘Let me apologize at the beginning,’ I would stop him right there,” one lawyer told South Africa’s Mail & Guardian.
This would be just the first of many oddities, inconsistencies, and stumbles that would mar Oscar Pistorius’s defense. Today, following the adjournment of trial until May 5,  the plausibility of Pistorius’s story now seems more in doubt.
More blows came Thursday. One of his defense witnesses, Roger Dixon, contradicted Oscar Pistorius’s own testimony on a key matter, the placement of a magazine rack inside the bathroom. Then he wrote on Facebook: “It is difficult to get belief in those who will not listen because it is not what they want to hear.”
Afterward, a star pathologist who Oscar Pistorius had hired to bolster the athlete’s defense announced he would not testify when trial resumes. “No, ma’am,” Reggie Perumal, who had been hired in time to attend Steenkamp’s autopsy, told an Agence France Presse reporter. ”I think you’re aware that I can’t say anything now.”
Today, Oscar Pistorius has a hunted, drawn look about him. Day by day of his testimony, as prosecutor Gerrie Nel came at him from every angle, his composure faded. Pistorius wept openly on the stand almost every day he was on it. He nearly vomited. He repeatedly offered ambiguous answers and said he “wasn’t sure.” Once, when impersonating how he sounded that the night he killed Steenkamp, his voice took on a keening falsetto.
Oscar Pistorius, who’s facing allegations of firing a gun on two separate incidents in addition to the Steenkamp murder charge, told what some call incredible tales in his testimony. He told the court he “accidentally” fired the four bullets that killed Steenkamp during a period in which, “I didn’t have time to think.”
He said one friend and an ex-girlfriend had “fabricated” two alleged incidents where he fired a gun, one of which occurred inside a restaurant. Pistorius denied shooting the gun.
“I physically didn’t discharge it,” he said. ”It went off when it was in my possession, but I did not have my finger on the trigger,” he said.
“The gun went off by itself?” inquired Nel, saying that type of Glock could only have fired if someone had their finger fully on the trigger.
“I know that my finger was not on the trigger,” Pistorius affirmed.
 
One particularly jarring example arrived when Pistorius described Steenkamp’s last moments. Neighbors have said under oath that they heard a woman screaming — before the gun shots. Pistorius maintains that Steenkamp never screamed. He claims the only screaming that had occurred that night had been him — before the gun fired and afterward.
Nel tore into that account in an exchange that may plague Pistorius as he proceeds forward. “She’s awake,” the prosecutor said. “She’s in the toilet. You’re shouting. You’re screaming. You’re three meters from her. She would have responded. She would not have been quiet, Mr. Pistorius.”
“A woman did not scream at any point,” Pistorius said. He added: “My lady, I wish she had let me know she was there.”
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« Reply #122 on: May 05, 2014, 01:07:35 PM »

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/oscar-pistorius/10808829/Oscar-Pistorius-friend-feared-he-would-kill-himself-after-shooting-Reeva-Steenkamp.html
Oscar Pistorius friend feared he would kill himself after shooting Reeva Steenkamp
Carice Viljoen, a friend of the athlete who was called to the house minutes after the shooting, describes "frantic" Pistorius's attempts to save girlfriend
May 5, 2014

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« Reply #123 on: May 05, 2014, 02:34:03 PM »

Reeva Steenkamp wanted to leave Oscar Pistorius's house when the couple got into an argument and the athlete shot her dead, chief prosecutor Gerrie Nel told his murder trial.

"Why would she leave her jeans on the floor if everything else is in her overnight bag?," he told Pretoria's High Court. "She wanted to leave, and you weren't sleeping, you were both awake and there was an argument."

Pistorius responded that Ms Steenkamp was neat and the jeans were inside out, which, according to the athlete, showed that she wasn't in the process of putting them on.

The prosecutor continued to pick holes in his version of events arguing Ms Steenkamp ate her last meal two hours before she was shot dead in the early hours of 14 February.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/oscar-pistorius-trial-reeva-steenkamp-wanted-to-leave-the-athletes-house-before-she-was-shot-dead-9258598.html
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« Reply #124 on: May 05, 2014, 02:35:34 PM »

I have to keep reminding myself
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« Reply #125 on: May 06, 2014, 10:41:30 PM »

Really?  Neither the prosecution nor the defense have any questions?     The article says "Frank" couldn't hear anything because of a water feature.  Well, even if he couldn't hear from that particular time, I think he could offer some answers.  It appears he was a long time worker in the home. 


http://www.independent.ie/world-news/africa/housekeeper-for-pistorius-slept-through-reeva-killing-30246258.html
Housekeeper for Pistorius 'slept through' Reeva killing
May 6, 2014

A Malawian housekeeper who was at the home of Oscar Pistorius on the night Reeva Steenkamp was killed "heard nothing" and will not be called by either the state or the defence team to give evidence in the athlete's murder trial.
Frank Chiziweni is understood to have slept in the domestic quarters next to the Paralympian's kitchen on the ground floor of his home on a secure estate outside Pretoria.

On the night Pistorius shot Reeva, neighbours up to 170 metres away claimed they were woken by sounds of an argument, shots and screams and a man shouting for help.

Pistorius told the court during his evidence that he screamed and shouted at the intruder he believed was in his home, as well as screaming to his girlfriend to call police.

After he realised she was behind the locked lavatory door into which he fired his gun four times, he said he opened his balcony doors to call for help before beating the door down with a cricket bat.

"I was crying out. I was screaming 'Reeva, Reeva'," he told the court. "I was overcome with terror and despair. At times I was screaming, at times I was crying out."

Mr Chiziweni, the closest person to the events of St Valentine's Day 2013, is understood to have told police that he slept through the incident.
He was mentioned by name for the first time yesterday, just over two months after the start of the 27-year-old athlete's trial for the premeditated murder of his girlfriend.

Carice Viljoen, a friend of Mr Pistorius whose father he rang moments after shooting 29-year-old Steenkamp, said when she arrived at the house, 'Frank' was standing in the road with the estate security guards.

The housekeeper has been mentioned in several profiles of Pistorius written before the shooting. In one, in October 2011, he is described being asked by Pistorius, who addresses him as "brother", to bring him his prosthetic legs. In another, written the following year, he is referred to as a "live-in caretaker who keeps his home spotless".

A policeman who arrived at the scene an hour after the shooting confirmed that Mr Chiziweni had been sleeping in a room off the kitchen and was awake when they arrived. He said the man spoke good English. "We said to him, 'You were here. What did you hear?' " the policeman said, adding that he had replied: "No, no, no, I didn't hear anything."

He said police had been unconvinced by his response: "We were all asking ourselves how he could not have heard anything," he said.
Another policeman at the scene said the housekeeper told detectives that a water feature next to his room had masked any sound from the main house.

Barry Roux, Mr Pistorius's barrister, said the defence would not be calling Mr Chiziweni.

Although Mr Chiziweni was listed as a prosecution witness, a source for the state said it would not be calling him, confirming that he told police in his statement he heard "absolutely nothing".

Anneliese Burgess, a spokesman for the Pistoriuses, said Mr Chiziweni still worked for the family. Pistorius denies her murder.
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« Reply #126 on: May 06, 2014, 10:46:36 PM »

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2621244/Oscar-Pistorius-live-housekeeper-wont-called-evidence-slept-gunshots-screams-night-athlete-killed-Reeva.html
Oscar Pistorius accused of trying to intimidate friend of Reeva Steenkamp in court by asking her: 'How can you sleep at night?'
May 6, 2014

* Athlete made remark to Kim Myers in a 'very sinister way', her lawyer said
*Reeva Steenkamp lived with the Myers family who often attend the trial
*Amputee denies allegation, saying he hasn't spoken to family for weeks
*Neighbour Michael Nhlengethwa was struck by model's warm personality
*Pistorius said 'meet my fiancée' to which he replied: 'This one's for keeps'
*Housekeeper won't give evidence because he 'slept through' gunshots
*Athlete 'was controlled by Satan' when he fired shots, says religious group

Oscar Pistorius has been accused of making a 'sinister' comment to a female friend of the girlfriend he shot dead during his murder trial.

The Paralympian allegedly asked Kim Myers: 'How can you sleep at night?'

Ian Levitt, a lawyer for the Myers family, who were close to Reeva Steenkamp, said Ms Myers told him Pistorius made the comment to her 'in a very sinister way'.

Miss Steenkamp, whom Pistorius shot and killed last year, lived with the Myers family and they say they were her second family.

'My client views this unwelcome approach as extremely disturbing and I have been in communication with the national prosecuting authorities,' Mr Levitt said in a later statement.

Members of the Myers family have been present for much of the murder trial, sitting on a wooden bench reserved for friends and family just feet away from the athlete.

Pistorius told reporters in the courtroom that he did not make the comment and hadn't spoken to members of the Myers family for weeks.

His lawyer, Brian Webber, said Pistorius also told him that the allegation was untrue.

'I've asked the client and he denies that he said it,' Mr Webber said.
 
Earlier, it was revealed that Pistorius's live-in housekeeper will not be called to give evidence because he apparently slept through the noise when the athlete shot his girlfriend.

Frank Chiziweni, a Malawian, lived in the domestic quarters next to the athlete’s kitchen on the ground floor of his home on a security estate outside Pretoria.

On the night Pistorius shot Reeva Steenkamp, 29, neighbours living up to 170 metres away claimed they were woken by sounds of an argument, shots and screams then a man shouting for help.

Yet the housekeeper told police he heard 'absolutely nothing' and will not be asked to give evidence at the trial of the 27-year-old South African Paralympian, who denies murder.

Pistorius told the court that he screamed and shouted at the intruder he believed was in his home, as well as screaming to his girlfriend to call police.
After he realised the model was in the locked toilet into which he fired his gun four times, he said he opened his balcony doors to call for help from his neighbours before beating the lavatory door down with a cricket bat.

A policeman who arrived at the scene an hour after the shooting confirmed Mr Chiziweni had been sleeping in a room off the kitchen and was awake when they arrived.

He said the man spoke good English.

'We said to him, you were here. What did you hear?' the policeman said, adding that he had replied: 'No, no, no, I didn’t hear anything'.

He said police had been unconvinced by his response. ‘We were all asking ourselves how he could not have heard anything,’ he said.

But Barry Roux, Pistorius's barrister, said the defence would not be asking Mr Chiziweni to come to court to give evidence.

Despite being listed as a prosecution witness, a source for the State said they would not call him either, confirming he told police in his statement he heard 'absolutely nothing'.

The housekeeper has been referred to in several profiles of Pistorius, a world-famous Paralympic athlete, written before the shooting.
 
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« Reply #127 on: May 12, 2014, 09:01:17 AM »

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/05/12/psychiatrist-testifies-at-trial-that-oscar-pistorius-has-anxiety-disorder/
Pistorius has 'anxiety disorder,' psychiatrist says
May 12, 2014

PRETORIA, South Africa –  The chief prosecutor in the murder trial of Oscar Pistorius said Monday that the double-amputee athlete should be placed under psychiatric observation after an expert called by the defense said Pistorius has an anxiety disorder.

Judge Thokozile Masipa has not yet ruled on the request. Prosecutor Gerrie Nel said he had no other option but to ask for a study of Pistorius' mental health following testimony by a psychiatrist, who said the Olympic runner's anxiety could have shaped the way he responded to perceived threats.

Pistorius has said he killed girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp by mistake last year, fearing that there was an intruder in his home when he fired through a closed toilet door in the early hours of Feb. 14, 2013. The prosecution says he killed her intentionally after an argument.

Psychiatrist Dr. Merryll Vorster said events during Pistorius' life, including the amputation of his lower legs as a baby and his late mother's habit of sleeping with a gun under her pillow, contributed to his "increasing stress."

"Overall, Mr. Pistorius appears to be a mistrustful and guarded person," Vorster testified.

She said the Olympic athlete displayed "escalating levels of anxiety" through his life when she interviewed him this month. Vorster said she also spoke to members of Pistorius' family, some of his friends and his agent.

Pistorius' defense said at the outset of its case that it would show his feelings of "vulnerability" and his disability contributed to him shooting Steenkamp. Pistorius is charged with premeditated murder and faces 25 years to life in prison if convicted.

Vorster's testimony also dealt with what she said was Pistorius' fear of crime and how, because he was a double amputee, he reacted to perceived threats in a different way to other people. She noted Pistorius' mother, who died when he was a teenager, slept with a gun in her bed and also had a fear of being attacked in her home.

Cross-examining Vorster at the start of the eighth week of the trial, prosecutor Nel asked if she was saying Pistorius had a mental illness and should undergo a 30-day period of observation, and if he was changing his defense to one of "diminished responsibility."

Nel also asked the psychiatrist if someone who was suffering from an anxiety order of the kind that she had diagnosed in Pistorius, and also had access to guns, would be a danger to society. Vorster said the person would, indeed, be a danger.

Talking specifically about the shooting of Steenkamp, Vorster said Pistorius was more likely to try and "fight" what he thought was an intruder than run away, because his disability meant it was harder for him to flee
 
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« Reply #128 on: May 12, 2014, 09:56:33 PM »

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-27381236
Oscar Pistorius trial: Ruling due on mental assessment
May 12, 2014

The judge in the trial of South African athlete Oscar Pistorius is due to rule on a prosecution application for him to undergo a 30-day mental observation.

The request followed testimony from a psychiatrist who said that Mr Pistorius suffered from an anxiety disorder.

The BBC's Andrew Harding in Pretoria says there is now the possibility of a lengthy delay in the case.

The double-amputee Paralympian denies intentionally shooting dead his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp last year.

Mr Pistorius says he accidentally shot her through the toilet door in a state of panic, mistaking the 29-year-old model and law graduate for an intruder.

Psychiatrist Merryll Vorster told the court that the athlete had had an anxiety disorder since childhood and was "anxious" about violent crime.

His actions on Valentine's Day last year "should be seen in context of his anxiety", she said.

'Danger to society'
If the prosecution request is granted, Mr Pistorius may spend up to 30 days in a state mental health institution for observation and assessment of his mental health.
The athlete has described the prosecution move as "a joke", insisting that Monday's evidence from Dr Vorster had "gone well", our correspondent says.

But the prosecution argues that her testimony is further proof that the athlete is changing his defence - from putative self-defence, to an accidental shooting, to something now linked to his state of mind, he says.

The defence opposed the application before the court adjourned on Monday.

Our correspondent says that court sources have indicated that it is unlikely that Judge Thokozile Masipa will grant the prosecution its request.


Dr Vorster said that the reactions of Mr Pistorius in the early hours of 14 February 2013 would have been different to that of a "normal, able-bodied person without generalised anxiety disorder".

She said that Mr Pistorius was more likely to respond to any threat with "fight" rather than "flight".

But she said that this would not have affected his ability to distinguish between right and wrong and that it was up to the court to decide whether his anxiety disorder diminished his responsibility.

The anxiety disorder was the result of surgery at the age of 11 months to remove his lower legs, she said, a "traumatic assault" for an infant at that age.

She said that Mr Pistorius felt remorse over Ms Steenkamp's death and had developed a depressive disorder as a result.

When state prosecutor Gerrie Nel asked Dr Vorster whether someone with anxiety disorder plus guns would be "a danger to society", she replied: "Yes".
 
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« Reply #129 on: May 14, 2014, 09:39:24 AM »

Well, this appears to be a bit of a surprise for some.  In the article I posted a couple of days ago. 

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-27381236
Oscar Pistorius trial: Ruling due on mental assessment
May 12, 2014

<snip>
"Our correspondent says that court sources have indicated that it is unlikely that Judge Thokozile Masipa will grant the prosecution its request."
<snip>

http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/14/world/africa/oscar-pistorius-trial/
Judge sends Oscar Pistorius for psychiatric tests, putting trial on hold
May 14, 2014

Pretoria, South Africa (CNN) -- Oscar Pistorius, the onetime Olympic athlete turned murder suspect, must undergo a month of psychiatric testing before his trial can continue, the judge in the case ruled Wednesday.
The move puts his trial on ice indefinitely.
It was triggered by the testimony of a psychiatrist who testified that the sprinter has suffered from generalized anxiety disorder since he was an infant, stemming partly from the amputation of both of his lower legs because of a genetic defect.
 
Pistorius, 27, does not claim he was insane or mentally incapacitated when he shot her, but when the defense put the psychiatrist on the stand, it raised the question of the athlete's mental health, the judge said Wednesday.
"A doubt has been created" that Pistorius may have a psychiatric issue that would affect the court's verdict, so she must order the testing, Judge Thokozile Masipa said Wednesday.
"The accused may not have raised the issue that he was not criminally responsible at the time of the incident in so many words, but evidence raised on his behalf cannot be ignored," she said of testimony by Dr. Merryll Vorster.
She acknowledged that her order would mean a long delay in the trial, but said that was not the most important consideration.
"This is not about anyone's convenience, but about whether justice has been served," she said.
"The aim of the referral is not to punish the accused twice," Masipa said, saying that Pistorius should be examined as an outpatient rather than committed to an institution if possible.
Expert report
Court will reconvene on Tuesday for her to issue her order formally, she said.
At that point, Pistorius will learn when and where he will be tested.
The prosecutor had argued in favor of psychological evaluation, while the defense argued against it.
The testing will be done by a panel of experts who will then submit a mental health report to the court, CNN legal analyst Kelly Phelps said.
At one extreme, they could find that Pistorius was mentally incapacitated at the time he killed Steenkamp, which would end the trial immediately in a verdict of not guilty by reason of mental illness, she said.
But it would also mean Pistorius needs to be committed to a mental health institution against his will until he is found not to be a danger, she said.
Another option is that they could find he had "diminished responsibility" at the time he killed Steenkamp. In that case, the trial would continue and his mental health would be taken into consideration during sentencing if he is found guilty, said Phelps, a criminologist and law lecturer at the University of Cape Town.
The third possibility is that the experts could disagree with the defense psychiatrist and say that Pistorius' mental health is not an issue at all. If that happens, Vorster's testimony will be disregarded, Phelps said.
The experts might not all agree with each other, and lawyers on either side could disagree with the experts' report, leading to any number of possible outcomes.
If there is any dispute, the final decision about what to do with the experts' report lies with Judge Masipa.
More...
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« Reply #130 on: May 14, 2014, 05:13:20 PM »

It didn't make sense to me for the defense to say Oscar suffered from an anxiety disorder that may have influenced his decisions on the night he killed Reeva , yet didn't want a mental evaluation.  The defense opened this can of worms themselves, imo. I believe the judge made the right call in ordering a full evaluation to be done.  JMHO

http://news.sky.com/story/1261682/pistorius-mental-health-at-heart-of-trial
Pistorius' Mental Health At Heart Of Trial
The defence loses their legal fight to prevent the athlete being ordered to undergo a full evaluation of his psychological state.
May 14, 2014

In a hasty, whispered exchange with his lawyer, Oscar Pistorius was given the news of the judge's ruling just moments before she delivered it in court.

His expression - grim resignation - said it all: the defence had lost their legal fight to prevent the South African athlete being ordered to undergo a full evaluation of his mental health.

Judge Thokozile Masipa said she had a duty to refer the athlete for tests by a panel of government psychiatrists after one of the defence's own witnesses raised the issue of his mental condition.

From the defence's perspective, it was an unintended and undesirable consequence of their decision to call psychiatrist Merryl Vorster to the witness box.

She had told the court the athlete suffered from "Generalised Anxiety Disorder", a condition that might have influenced his actions on the night he shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

The prosecution leapt on the diagnosis and immediately demanded the full, independent evaluation, warning that without it any conviction could be vulnerable to appeal.

The judge agreed and, suddenly, the 10-week long murder trial that was inching to a conclusion was adjourned.

The details of process will be determined when the court reconvenes on Tuesday.

But it is expected - likely much to the athlete’s relief - that he will be examined as an "out-patient" rather than admitted to a psychiatric facility for observation.

The panel of assessors will be made up of at least three psychiatrists and clinical psychologists.

The usual period of observation is 30 days and it could then take a similar amount of time for the report to be compiled. 

The key, in terms of the case, is whether the psychiatrists diagnose any disorder which might indicate "diminished capacity".

In layman’s terms - that the athlete's mental problems meant he could not be held responsible for the shooting.

That seems unlikely, but even a lesser "condition" might be a factor in the case and the court cannot proceed until the matter is settled so the trial may be delayed for months.
What has baffled many watching the trial - criminal lawyers among them - is why this was not all dealt with at the beginning of the case if it was a consideration.

And why Pistorius' own lawyers did not realise the implications of the evidence their own psychiatrist would give?

Some argue, and this is an allegation that's been raised by the prosecution, that the athlete’s legal team is so concerned by how the case is going that the net has been cast wide for any new defence - including his mental state.

Alternatively, they had hoped to introduce the "anxiety disorder" not as a determining factor in the case but simply as context for the events of the shooting on Valentine’s Day last year.
 
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« Reply #131 on: May 20, 2014, 08:52:05 AM »

http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/20/world/africa/oscar-pistorius-trial/
Judge lays down rules for Oscar Pistorius psychiatric tests
May 20, 2014

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
* Pistorius will undergo mental health observations over the next month
*He will be tested on an outpatient basis and can go home each day
*The evaluations push the trial back until June 30

Pretoria, South Africa (CNN) -- Oscar Pistorius must report for a month-long mental examination starting next Monday, the judge in his murder trial said Tuesday.
But unlike many defendants who have been ordered to psychiatric evaluation, the Olympian will not be committed to a medical facility. Judge Thokozile Masipa said Pistorius must report each weekday starting Monday, but will have evenings and weekends free.
 
The testing was triggered by the testimony of a psychiatrist who said that the sprinter has suffered from generalized anxiety disorder since he was an infant, stemming partly from the amputation of both of his lower legs because of a genetic defect.
 
Pistorius has not claimed he was insane or mentally incapacitated when he shot her. But when the defense put a psychiatrist on the stand, it raised the question of the athlete's mental health, the judge said last week.
The expert panel evaluating Pistorius has three options:
1) They could find that Pistorius was mentally incapacitated when he shot Steenkamp, which would end the trial immediately in a verdict of not guilty by reason of mental illness. That would lead to the athlete being committed to a mental institution until he is ruled not to be a danger.
2) The doctors could also find that he had "diminished responsibility" at the time he killed Steenkamp. In that case, the trial would resume, and the experts' finding would be taken into consideration during sentencing if he is found guilty.
3) The third possibility is that the experts could disagree with the defense psychiatrist and say that Pistorius' mental health is not an issue at all.

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« Reply #132 on: May 20, 2014, 09:26:13 AM »

It appears to me the judge is playing this very safe.  She's making sure Oscar undergoes a psychiatric evaluation, since there were issues brought up by the defense.  However, I also see she has set down some rules, which is good, but also indicates Oscar is getting privileges others may not have, such as being able to go home each night.  It's a high profile case and the world is watching.  He's a celebrity and a hero to some.  And yet, what about the common man?  Why is there a double standard? 

I believe the statements by the defense psychiatrist blew up in the defense's face.  I don't believe it occurred to the Pistorius camp that Oscar would have to under go a psychiatric exam.  With all of Oscars crying and vomiting over the course of the trial, with the breaks taken to let him recover etc., the defense played it too far.  They brought it into play themselves.  And when it came up that there should be an exam, the defense didn't want it.  Whoops!  Can't have it both ways. 

Oscar's country has a background of haves and have nots, and it's become apparent he's a have.  He's still innocent until judgement, but I feel for Reeva's family.  Oscar is getting preferential treatment.  He shouldn't be treated worse, but he shouldn't be treated any better either.  He's been allowed to leave the country, to continue to compete in races and etc.  He's had to sell his house for his defense (at least he had a house to sell) and there will always be a cloud over his reputation even if he's found not-guilty of murder.  The judge has to satisfy a population, imo.  My opinion is at this point, that Oscar will get a slap on the wrist.  Depending on the psychiatric eval, he may need to have treatment.  Whatever happens, I hope Oscar is never, ever allowed to have guns or ammunition in his proximity.  Even in my State of Texas, where guns are common, no one I know of would say it's okay to shoot though a closed door without knowing who or what you are shooting.  Oscar has issues; I'm just not sure if he's paranoid or a murderer at this point.  All jmho


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« Reply #133 on: May 20, 2014, 09:38:44 AM »

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/pistorius-start-mental-evaluation-week-23789754
Pistorius to Start Mental Evaluation Next Week
May 20, 2014

Oscar Pistorius will start a period of psychiatric evaluation at a government institution next week, a judge ruled on Tuesday as she postponed the star athlete's murder trial until June 30.

A panel of mental health experts is now to decide if the double-amputee runner can be held criminally responsible for killing his girlfriend.

Judge Thokozile Masipa took just a few minutes to read out her ruling that the Olympian must present himself at 9 a.m. on Monday and every weekday after that at the Weskoppies Psychiatric Hospital in Pretoria.

Pistorius will be treated as an outpatient, Masipa ruled, and will be allowed to leave the facility in the South African capital each day at 4 p.m. or when "formally excused" by hospital authorities. The period of evaluation will be for no more than 30 days, the judge said, and will depend on how long the panel of four experts needs to observe Pistorius and compile a report for the court. The panel will consist of three psychiatrists and a clinical psychologist, Masipa said.
 
A psychiatrist called by Pistorius' defense lawyers recently testified she believes the runner had an anxiety disorder from childhood which may have contributed to him killing Steenkamp. That prompted the chief prosecutor to ask the court that he be sent for independent psychiatric tests.

Kelly Phelps, a senior lecturer in the public law department at the University of Cape Town and a legal expert observing the trial, said the psychiatric evaluation could affect both the verdict and, if Pistorius is convicted, the sentencing. She saw three possible outcomes:

— An "extreme" conclusion in which the panel decides Pistorius was unable to distinguish between right and wrong, or act in accordance with that understanding, because of an anxiety disorder when he killed Steenkamp. Such an outcome, according to Phelps, would result in a verdict of "not guilty by reason of mental illness."

— The panel basically agrees with the defense witness, Dr. Merryll Vorster, who said Pistorius was able to distinguish between right and wrong but had the anxiety disorder, possibly bolstering Pistorius' argument that he was acting in "putative self-defense" because he feared his life was in danger from a perceived intruder.

— The panel contradicts Vorster and says Pistorius does not have an anxiety disorder, possibly casting doubt on the defense's argument that Pistorius had a long-held fear of crime and felt anxious and vulnerable when he shot Steenkamp.

Judge Masipa said Tuesday that the panel should determine whether any mental illness may have affected Pistorius' capacity to be "criminally responsible" for killing Steenkamp. She said the panel would evaluate "whether he was capable of appreciating the wrongfulness of his act or of acting in accordance with an appreciation of the wrongfulness of his act."

The world-famous disabled athlete faces 25 years to life in prison if found guilty on the premeditated murder charge. He is free on bail.
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« Reply #134 on: May 20, 2014, 08:22:22 PM »

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/21/world/africa/oscar-pistorius-murder-trial.html
Psychiatric Tests Raise Question of Pistorius’s Criminal Liability
May 20, 2014

 
Starting Monday, a panel of mental health experts will seek to determine whether Mr. Pistorius, in the words of Judge Thokozile Matilda Masipa, was “capable of appreciating the wrongfulness of his act or acting in accordance with appreciation of the wrongfulness of his act” when he opened fire on a locked bathroom door at his home in the early hours of Feb. 14, 2013.

Mr. Pistorius says he feared that an intruder hiding in the bathroom was about to attack and fired in what his defense lawyers call “putative self-defense.” It was only after he broke through the door with a cricket bat that he realized that his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, 29, a model and law school graduate, was on the other side, he has said. The prosecution says he killed her in a jealous rage after an argument.

Since the trial opened on March 3, those two narratives have formed the core of the legal battle. The introduction of a new element — Mr. Pistorius’s mental health, and with it, the question of criminal responsibility — has shifted the case into a new, high-stakes phase that could sway the course of the trial.

By some accounts, the examinations at Weskoppies — built in 1892 in what was then the Republic of Transvaal, and known initially as the Pretoria Lunatic Asylum — could even determine whether the hearings proceed at all.

Tyrone Maseko, a criminal lawyer, said on the television station eNCA in South Africa that the question the psychiatric panel would seek to answer from Mr. Pistorius was “Do you have the ability to appreciate the difference between wrong and right?”

If Mr. Pistorius passes the first part of the test, Mr. Maseko said, the panel’s next move will be to evaluate whether, “at the time of the commission of the offense, he had the ability to act in accordance with that appreciation.”


“If he fails that second part,” he added, “we say he has diminished capacity.”

Two South African lawyers not connected with the case said the country’s Criminal Procedure Act stipulated that defendants found to have a mental disorder or defect that rendered them unable to distinguish between right and wrong at the time of an offense must be committed indefinitely to a mental hospital.


On Tuesday, the 33rd day of the trial, Judge Masipa adjourned the oft-delayed case until June 30 to allow time for the psychiatric evaluation.

The debate about Mr. Pistorius’s mental health erupted last week, when a forensic psychiatrist, Dr. Merryll Vorster, testified for the defense that the athlete, born without fibula bones, had a generalized anxiety disorder dating to a double amputation below the knee at the age of 11 months that was followed by a difficult childhood.

Dr. Vorster said that the disorder did not mean Mr. Pistorius could not distinguish between right and wrong, but that the condition would have affected his behavior on the night of the shooting. Mr. Pistorius’s defense lawyer, Barry Roux, apparently intended the evidence to bolster the argument that the athlete was unusually susceptible to fears about intruders, particularly in light of a sense of vulnerability related to his disability.

The prosecutor, Gerrie Nel, said the mere suggestion of a mental disorder demanded a full psychiatric report, and the judge agreed.

Mr. Pistorius faces a mandatory 25-year minimum prison term if convicted of premeditated murder.
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« Reply #135 on: May 26, 2014, 01:13:47 PM »

http://www.myfoxaustin.com/story/25610448/pistorius-starts-psychiatric-evaluation
Pistorius starts psychiatric evaluation
May 26, 2014

JOHANNESBURG (AP) - Oscar Pistorius' murder trial began a new phase Monday when the Olympic athlete arrived at a state psychiatric hospital for a monthlong evaluation whose terms have been described by some as favorable to the double-amputee runner.

Pistorius, who killed girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in his home last year, sat in the passenger seat of a black sedan and spoke on a cellphone as he arrived behind a police van at Weskoppies Psychiatric Hospital in Pretoria, the South African capital.

The judge who will deliver a verdict in the case asked the hospital to determine if Pistorius had a mental disorder at the time of the shooting, which could affect whether he should be held criminally responsible.

Pistorius must arrive by 9 a.m. and can leave by 4 p.m. each weekday, and has weekends off under an order from Judge Thokozile Masipa. Pistorius, who is free on bail, has been staying at the upscale Pretoria home of his uncle.

Pistorius' outpatient status troubles some experts who say 24-hour observation is common in state psychiatric facilities. In the evenings, nursing staff can get additional insights into a patient's mental state that complement formal questioning and other tests during the day, say the experts.

"There is a benefit" to the after-hours observation, said Lee-Ann Hartman, a clinical psychologist who has worked in state psychiatric facilities.


Masipa's instruction came after a psychiatrist testified that Pistorius, who has said he feels particularly vulnerable because of his disability and long-held worry about crime, had an anxiety disorder that could have contributed to his shooting of Steenkamp on Feb. 14, 2013. The judge was responding to a prosecution request for an independent inquiry, based on concern the defense would argue Pistorius was not guilty because of mental illness.

Prosecutors allege Pistorius killed Steenkamp intentionally after a late-night fight, but the athlete says he mistook his girlfriend for a dangerous intruder hiding in a toilet cubicle when he shot her multiple times through the door.

There is a long waiting list for observation cases at state psychiatric hospitals and Pistorius' assessment will be faster because he does not need a hospital bed, said Gerhard Grundling, chair of the Clinical Psychology Forum, a South African group. He said the observation will likely include blood tests and possible brain scans and that more specialists, including a neurologist, can get involved as needed.

Additionally, in such observations, social workers gather "collateral information" in interviews with friends, family and others, according to Grundling.


Other trials had been delayed for nearly a year because of patient backlogs at state mental health facilities, said Jack Bloom, an opposition member of the provincial legislature.

"Everyone should be equal before the law, no matter how famous," Bloom said, urging authorities to explain the runner's "preferential treatment" as an outpatient receiving speedy observation.


Pistorius faces 25 years to life in prison if convicted of premeditated murder. Trial proceedings resume June 30.

The high-security Weskoppies hospital was called the Pretoria Lunatic Asylum long ago. Accounts described crowded, unhygienic conditions and staffing shortages there during the 1899-1902 Anglo-Boer war, though conditions later improved.
 
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« Reply #136 on: June 30, 2014, 08:44:51 AM »

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/africa/oscar-pistorius-not-mentally-ill-when-he-killed-reeva-steenkamp-1.1850216
Oscar Pistorius ‘not mentally ill’ when he killed Reeva Steenkamp
Experts conclude Pistorius was ‘capable of appreciating the wrongfulness of his ac
t’
June 30, 2014

A panel of mental health experts have concluded Oscar Pistorius was not suffering from a mental illness when he killed girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, the athlete’s murder trial has heard today.
Mr Pistorius’ trial resumed after a break of one month during which a psychologist and three psychiatrists also assessed whether the double-amputee runner was capable of understanding the wrongfulness of his act when he shot Ms Steenkamp through a closed toilet door.
The panel’s reports were submitted to Judge Thokozile Masipa, and prosecutor Gerrie Nel referred to key parts of the conclusions, noting that the experts believed Mr Pistorius was “capable of appreciating the wrongfulness of his act” when he killed Ms Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model.

The evaluation came after a psychiatrist, Dr Merryll Vorster, testified for the defence that Mr Pistorius, who has said he feels vulnerable because of his disability and a long-held worry about crime, had an anxiety disorder that could have contributed to the killing in the early hours of February 14th, last year.
He testified that he opened fire after mistakenly thinking there was a dangerous intruder in the toilet.
Prosecutor Gerrie Nel has alleged that Mr Pistorius, 27, killed Ms Steenkamp after a Valentine’s Day argument, and has portrayed the Olympic athlete as a hothead with a love of guns and an inflated sense of entitlement.
But he requested an independent inquiry into Mr Pistorius’ state of mind, based on concern the defence would argue Mr Pistorius was not guilty because of mental illness.
Mr Pistorius faces 25 years to life in prison if found guilty of premeditated murder, and could also face years in prison if convicted of murder without premeditation or negligent killing. He is free on bail.
 
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« Reply #137 on: July 01, 2014, 08:43:34 AM »

June 30, 2014 Live Blog There are some excerpts in the trial blog that are very interesting in that they raise more questions of what may have really happened.  JMHO

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/oscar-pistorius-murder-trial-recap-3787149
Oscar Pistorius murder trial: Recap of updates as psychiatrists conclude athlete 'not mentally ill during shooting'
Jun 30, 2014 14:15 By Steve Robson

 
2:15 pm
Here's a quickfire recap of what's happened:


A panel of psychiatrists say Oscar Pistorius was NOT mentally ill when he shot dead Reeva Steenkamp
The athlete was capable of knowing right from wrong despite suffering from an anxiety disorder
Dr Gerald Versfeld, the physician who amputated Pistorius' leg and who has known since he was a baby, gave evidence
He said Pistorius is "vulnerable" both when on his stumps and his prosthetic legs
He says the athlete would have trouble "turning and running from danger"
But Dr Versfeld concedes that Pistorius' claim to have turned and rushed back into the bedroom in pitch black is "improbable"
Prosecution and defence clash over a missing electrical cord which was at the scene but has since apparently been "lost" by police
Sound engineer Ivan Lin says screams at 177m away would not be audible or at least unlikely, but at 80m away they would be

Join us back here at mirror.co.uk from 7.30am tomorrow for all the latest from Pretoria.
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« Reply #138 on: July 02, 2014, 09:41:43 AM »

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/03/world/africa/pistorius-at-increasing-risk-of-suicide-lawyer-says.html
Pistorius at Increasing Risk of Suicide, Lawyer Says
July 2, 2014

LONDON — A psychologist’s report read by the defense at the murder trial of Oscar Pistorius on Wednesday said the disabled athlete — once a major draw at international track meets, including the Olympics — was at increasing risk of suicide without treatment for post-traumatic stress and depression brought on by the killing of his girlfriend last year.

The assertion on the 36th day of the trial raised the stakes in a battle of perceptions and presentation between the defense and the prosecution over the true nature of Mr. Pistorius’s personality and the extent of his mental health problems before and after the death of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, on Feb. 14, 2013.

Mr. Pistorius, 27, has denied murdering Ms. Steenkamp, testifying that he shot her by mistake because he believed that an intruder had entered his home in the South African capital, Pretoria.

Specifically, the defense is seeking to challenge the depiction of Mr. Pistorius as prone to rage, violence, lies and narcissism — factors that the prosecution has cited to support its case that the athlete, a double amputee since infancy, murdered Ms. Steenkamp, 29, in a jealous rage.
More...
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« Reply #139 on: July 02, 2014, 09:45:59 AM »

You can scroll down and read the updates from the trial. 

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/oscar-pistorius-murder-trial-live-3797456
Oscar Pistorius murder trial: Live updates as psychologist says Paralympian is at risk of SUICIDE
July 1, 2014

2:11 pm

The judge has made an order banning the publication of intimate details from Pistorius' psychiatric report.
She then adjourned the court for the day.
The trial will continue tomorrow morning.

2:07 pm
The evidence is now getting extremely technical and detailed.
Professor Derman is talking about the inner workings of the brain to highlight the fight or flight response.
He has been showing a graph to the courtroom.
 
12:23 pm
RECAP


With the court currently breaking for lunch, now is a good time to go over this morning's evidence.Here are the most important points to come out of this morning's session.
Oscar Pistorius is 'severely traumatised' following Reeva Steenkamp's death and is suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
If he does not continue to receive clinical care then Pistorius is at risk of committing suicide
A psychologist also said no evidence could be found that the athlete has a history of "abnormal aggression or explosive violence"
A professor who has worked with the South African Paralympic teams says Pistorius is an "anxious individual" who is "hyper vigilant"
He has a tremor in his hands and suffers from a sleep disorder
The court heard Pistorius was in love with former girlfriend Samantha Taylor and attempted to get her a ticket to the London 2012 Games\
 
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