Pistorius Out On Parole After Less Than a Year Behind Bars...

[Formaldehyde]

This is just disgusting...

Pistorius freed on parole after year behind bars for killing girlfriend

Oscar Pistorius, South Africa's "Blade Runner", was released on parole on Monday, just short of a year into his five-year sentence for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

But the disgraced Paralympic gold medalist must serve the rest of his sentence under house arrest, and still has to face an appeal by prosecutors who argue that he should have been convicted of murder rather than culpable homicide.

Pistorius, 28, who was found guilty of the lesser charge when he fired four shots through a locked bathroom door and hit Steenkamp, will be confined to his uncle Arnold's home in a wealthy suburb of the capital Pretoria.

The athlete, whose lower legs were amputated when he was a baby, will be freed in line with South African sentencing guidelines that say non-dangerous prisoners should spend only one-sixth of a custodial sentence behind bars.

The department of correctional services said Pistorius' parole conditions include that the gun enthusiast must undergo psychotherapy and is not allowed to possess a gun.

Africa's most advanced economy has one of the world's highest rates of violent crime.

"He might not have been found guilty of murder, but it was yet another instance of a South African woman killed by an intimate partner, and I don't believe the time he spent in prison reflects the severity either of his crime or the epidemic of violence against women," said Louise Ferreira, a feminist.

Steenkamp's family have said they are unhappy with Pistorius's sentence and questioned the verdict in public in August.

Tania Koen, a lawyer for the Steenkamp family which has opposed early parole, told state broadcaster SABC last week: "Nothing is changed in their lives. Reeva is not coming back."

Prosecutors argue the verdict should be one of murder because Pistorius must have known that the person behind the door could be killed. The appeal is due to be heard on Nov. 3.

The state will argue that the trial judge misinterpreted parts of the law and ignored vital evidence. A murder conviction would result in a minimum sentence of 15 years in prison.

A panel of five judges will hear the appeal. They could either reject the prosecution's appeal, order a retrial or convict Pistorius of murder themselves, legal experts say.

 

[Evie]

One can dispute the verdict of culpable homicide (although as one didn't sit in the trial, see the evidence the judge saw, or even live in the same country the trial happened in, one should probably exercise some restraint), but once that verdict is in...I see absolutely nothing wrong with paroling after a year.

Culpable homicide means that the death was unintentional on your part. You didn't mean to kill anyone, you didn't mean to break the law, you just made a bad call that resulted in a death that you absolutely didn't intend. And while I do think such people SHOULD get a time in jail, ultimately, treating them like hardened criminals or willing killers doesn't benefit them, doesn't benefit the victims or their families and doesn't benefit society as a whole.

Society is probably not all that well served by keeping you inside, at that point.

 

[Kyriakos]

Not having followed this case much, i mostly recall that Pistorius seemed to be quite lost in all this. Being 'irrationally' afraid and shooting as a consequence is not really justifying being in jail for just one year.

TBH he looks like he has huge issues, and yeah, i doubt many would cope with having no legs and being on the public eye as well. Still, he caused the death of another person. Sympathy can't be extended to victims who move on to victimise others.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

One can dispute the verdict of culpable homicide (although as one didn't sit in the trial, see the evidence the judge saw, or even live in the same country the trial happened in, one should probably exercise some restraint), but once that verdict is in...I see absolutely nothing wrong with paroling after a year.

Culpable homicide means that the death was unintentional on your part. You didn't mean to kill anyone, you didn't mean to break the law, you just made a bad call that resulted in a death that you absolutely didn't intend. And while I do think such people SHOULD get a time in jail, ultimately, treating them like hardened criminals or willing killers doesn't benefit them, doesn't benefit the victims or their families and doesn't benefit society as a whole.

Society is probably not all that well served by keeping you inside, at that point.

But...but...but...he is a FAMOUS person! That makes his flesh extra tasty and everyone deserves a pound!

 

[Formaldehyde]

One can dispute the verdict of culpable homicide (although as one didn't sit in the trial, see the evidence the judge saw, or even live in the same country the trial happened in, one should probably exercise some restraint), but once that verdict is in...I see absolutely nothing wrong with paroling after a year.

Culpable homicide means that the death was unintentional on your part. You didn't mean to kill anyone, you didn't mean to break the law, you just made a bad call that resulted in a death that you absolutely didn't intend. And while I do think such people SHOULD get a time in jail, ultimately, treating them like hardened criminals or willing killers doesn't benefit them, doesn't benefit the victims or their families and doesn't benefit society as a whole.

Society is probably not all that well served by keeping you inside, at that point.

Perhaps you didn't read this part of the story:

"He might not have been found guilty of murder, but it was yet another instance of a South African woman killed by an intimate partner, and I don't believe the time he spent in prison reflects the severity either of his crime or the epidemic of violence against women," said Louise Ferreira, a feminist.

This amount of time in prison is a bad joke.

Not to mention it wasn't "culpable homicide" at all. He intentionally murdered her. Pistorius is the OJ Simpson of South Africa.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Or perhaps I don't follow Louise Ferreira in preference to the court. Someone spouting "he wasn't found guilty of murder, but let's treat him as if he was" just doesn't get me going the way it apparently does you.

 

[BvBPL]

A five year prison term, which is what Pistorius was sentenced to and what is the maximum for the crime of which he was found guilty, isn't an unusual sentence for similar incidents of involuntary homicide in the states. Indeed, it is probably longer than most such sentences in the states.

South African law requires that offenders deemed not to be a danger to others should serve five sixths of their sentences away from prison in other custodial settings, such as house arrest. Divorced from Pistorius, this strikes me as a very wise social policy.

 

[Formaldehyde]

A five year prison term, which is what Pistorius was sentenced to and what is the maximum for the crime of which he was found guilty, isn't an unusual sentence for similar incidents of involuntary homicide in the states. Indeed, it is probably longer than most such sentences in the states.

South African law requires that offenders deemed not to be a danger to others should serve 80% of their sentences away from prison in other custodial settings, such as house arrest. Divorced from Pistorius, this strikes me as a very wise social policy.

Your apparently complete silence regarding the fate of those in the worst criminal justice system in the world compared to this case and the way rich celebrities are coddled in South Africa is certainly noted.

Pistorius at uncle's mansion after being released from jail

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Oscar Pistorius was with his family at his uncle's mansion Tuesday after the Olympic athlete who killed his girlfriend was released from prison under cover of darkness and moved to house arrest a day earlier than expected.

"Oscar is here, and Oscar is at home with the family," said Anneliese Burgess, the spokeswoman for the Pistorius family, addressing dozens of reporters outside Arnold Pistorius' home in Waterkloof, an upmarket suburb of South Africa's capital Pretoria.

"The family is happy that Oscar is at home," Burgess said.

Burgess was surrounded by reporters and camera crews — many of whom had camped out at the house overnight — when reading a prepared statement outside Arnold Pistorius' house on Tuesday morning. Pistorius will be under house arrest at the grand home with lush, landscaped gardens and a large, cross-shaped swimming pool. Many ambassadorial residences line the street.

Apparently responding to criticism that Pistorius' release after just a year in prison was too lenient, Burgess said Pistorius' sentence "has not been shortened or reduced."

"He now enters the next phase of his sentence. He will serve this under the strict conditions that govern correctional supervision," she said.

Under South African law, an offender sentenced to five years or less in jail can be released to correctional supervision after serving one-sixth of the term — in Pistorius' case 10 months.

The full conditions under which Pistorius must live for the next four years have not been released by the corrections department and Burgess would not detail them on Tuesday. Only two conditions for Pistorius' house arrest were previously made public: Pistorius must continue to undergo psychotherapy while under house arrest and he is not allowed to handle any firearms.

Typically, offenders under correctional supervision can only leave their home for specific reasons, like to attend church or to do grocery shopping. They generally cannot leave the house at night. Pistorius will not be required to wear an electronic tagging device.

The fix was in. And it has been all along. There is obviously no requirement they be released after such a short period to serve out the rest of the "sentence" in luxury. And I dare say it would be incredibly rare if it was someone else under the same conditions.

 

[warpus]

I don't believe the time he spent in prison reflects the severity either of his crime or the epidemic of violence against women," said Louise Ferreira, a feminist.

I don't think someone who kills a woman should automatically get a longer sentence than someone who kills a man. Louise Ferreira is an idiot.

Having said that, this does seem rather lenient at first glance.

 

[Formaldehyde]

In other words, you actually agree with what she stated instead of the strawman of her statement.

 

[BvBPL]

Your apparently complete silence regarding the fate of those in the worst criminal justice system in the world compared to this case and the way rich celebrities are coddled in South Africa is certainly noted.

I've devoted a large portion of my professional life to representing those in prison. It is a tenant of my Catholic faith. The fact that I do not harp upon that on a video game website of all places is demonstrative of my respect for my profession; the courts in which I serve; and, most of all, the dignity and privacy of my clients. Any silence on this issue in this forum is born of the promises I made to my clients, not an indication of my feelings on the system.

 

[warpus]

In other words, you actually agree with what she stated instead of the strawman of her statement.

Eh? Her statement (that I quoted) had idiocy in it as well as some truth. I thought that I pointed out exactly which part I agree with and which part of it is idiotic.

 

[Evie]

Even if we were to believe crimes against discriminated-against groups should be more harshly punished (I'm not making the case we should, I'm saying, EVEN if we did), it would make no freaking sense in cases like manslaughter or culpable homicide, since the whole point of those charges is "Yeah, you weren't trying to kill or hurt anyone, you just acted real dumb, but the kind of real dumb that's so dumb we have to punish you."

It would be the equivalent of tacking hate crime sentencing to deadly assault with a vehicles charge in a DUI case. It makes no sense whatsoever.

(This, incidentally, is probably the easiest analogue for what the judge determined the Pistorius case to be legally - the equivalent of someone getting drunk and smashing their car, killing their girlfriend in the passenger seat.)

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Poor people on home arrest are stuck in a hovel, rich people on home arrest are stuck in a mansion...that really has nothing to do with sentencing laws or the administration of the criminal justice system.

 

[Formaldehyde]

I've devoted a large portion of my professional life to representing those in prison. It is a tenant of my Catholic faith. The fact that I do not harp upon that on a video game website of all places is demonstrative of my respect for my profession; the courts in which I serve; and, most of all, the dignity and privacy of my clients. Any silence on this issue in this forum is born of the promises I made to my clients, not an indication of my feelings on the system.

Not making any comments about the reprehensible criminal justice system which you now even claim to play some sort of a role is hardly rationalized by remaining completely silent as a supposed "demonstration" of "respect" for those very institutions.

Just the opposite would seem to be true. You would supposedly have a great deal of experience in this matter which would be incredibly germane to these threads. Yet you choose to not actually express your opinions, as you typically do no matter the topic. Are we to believe it is always out of supposed "respect" for your profession which makes it so difficult to actually discuss the topic?

Eh? Her statement (that I quoted) had idiocy in it as well as some truth. I thought that I pointed out exactly which part I agree with and which part of it is idiotic.

I think it is quite obvious you completely misunderstood what she actually stated, since there is no mention at all that those whose victims are women should have longer "automatic" sentences than those who do not.

Poor people on home arrest are stuck in a hovel, rich people on home arrest are stuck in a mansion...that really has nothing to do with sentencing laws or the administration of the criminal justice system.

Then I'm sure you can prove that poor people in South Africa are treated exactly the same way. That virtually everybody gets released on parole shortly after serving 1/6th of their actual sentence behind bars.

 

[Evie]

Even if that's the case (I have no idea whether it is), Pistorius being given the parole he's legally entitled to is not a problem. People NOT getting paroled when they're legally entitled to it is the problem.

So you would do your case a lot more good by pointing out at someone who actually FAILED to get parole when entitled to it, rather than screaming and raving about Pistorius.

 

[Formaldehyde]

Right. Like it isn't patently obvious that not everybody is placed on parole in South Africa after 1/6th of their sentence has been served in prison, as I "scream" and "rave" about Pistorius in a nonsensical legal proceeding which has received international condemnation.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Then I'm sure you can prove that poor people in South Africa are treated exactly the same way. That virtually everybody gets released on parole shortly after serving 1/6th of their actual sentence behind bars.

I won't say what I am sure you can prove.

Nor will I claim intimate knowledge of how the South Africans administer their justice system. I do however take the quote that YOU provided on the matter, stating that after one sixth of sentence someone sentenced to five years or less can be shifted to home confinement at face value.

I'm sure that if they had their preference they would indeed shove everyone into home confinement at the first opportunity, because it reduces costs by a huge margin. Does that mean that they can in fact accomplish that? Probably not. Someone like me always serves full term in traditional incarceration, because homeless people aren't eligible for home confinement. No doubt home confinement in some cases requires a GPS bracelet, which is typically paid for by the inmate and a lot of people can't afford. Having an uncle with a mansion is cool, but how many people have a family member with any dwelling where they can put up a relative for four years, given that the relative in question is on residential confinement so if they are going to work they have to have some sort of "work from home" skills?

I get it. Rich and famous guy has advantages because he is rich and famous. That's life, whether the rich and famous guy shoots someone or not. I get it, but I get over it rather than try to say the criminal justice system should fix it by treating them worse than called for.

 

[warpus]

I think it is quite obvious you completely misunderstood what she actually stated, since there is no mention at all that those whose victims are women should have longer "automatic" sentences than those who do not.

I don't believe the time he spent in prison reflects the severity either of his crime or the epidemic of violence against women," said Louise Ferreira, a feminist.

Maybe it is you who didn't read the entirety of what she's saying? And where did I ever mention the word "automatic" ?

She's saying that the punishment is not long enough for a crime that resulted in violence against a woman. I say that the punishment seems to be too lenient no matter what the gender of the victim is.

 

[Evie]

Right. Like it isn't patently obvious that not everybody is placed on parole in South Africa after 1/6th of their sentence has been served in prison, as I "scream" and "rave" about Pistorius in a nonsensical legal proceeding which has received international condemnation.

International condemnation is hardly proof of wrongdoing. Especially when it comes from extremists like you.