Oscar Pistorius has been granted bail and will be released ahead of his murder trial, after the judge determined the athlete was not a flight risk. Source: AFP
OSCAR Pistorius has been granted bail and will be freed from custody pending his trial in the Valentine's Day shooting death of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
Chief Magistrate Desmond Nair said it had not been established that Pistorius was a flight risk, nor had it been established the accused would be violent again.
EARLIER: The prosecution case had wrapped up, prosecutor Gerrie Nel focusing on Pistorius's affidavit testimony as to what happened the night Reeva Steenkamp was killed. He said the accused athlete should take the stand to testify personally.
He says every angle of the athlete's story is "improbable".
"It's always easy to give a version, especially if there's only one person there," he said.
His version: The Pistorius affidavit
Carl Pistorius and father Henke hug on February 21, 2013 at the Magistrate Court in Pretoria where Oscar Pistorius is facing a bail hearing after being cgharged with murder. AFP / Joe Alexander
On the accusation that the alleged murder was premeditated, the prosecutor said: "I'm not saying the murder of Reeva Steenkamp was planned days in advance, or weeks in advance". But he says Pistorius "wanted to kill".
He also repeated the prosecution stance that Pistorius should not get bail because he is a flight risk and has likened the case to that of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is wanted for questioning over alleged sexual assaults but has claimed political asylum at an embassy in London. Mr Nel said Assange has skipped bail.
"He is a well-known person, he is as well known as Mr Pistorius," he said, explaining that fame should not be a reason to consider an accused person would not flee. He also said the double-amputee's disability should not be given special consideration.
"If somebody with disability commits a crime, we have to treat him differently? Courts cannot be seen to treat famous people differently."
"He (Pistorius) hasn't said so, but he must think that conviction is likely,'' Mr Nel said.
Aimee and Carl Pistorius have been in court each day. The strain has showed.
"He must realise that a long term of imprisonment is almost guaranteed. If you're looking at life imprisonment as a possibility, it's not easy to stay if you have means to leave.''
Mr Nel said Pistorius "has the international status to be accommodated elsewhere''.
But Magistrate Desmond Nair seemed sceptical over the argument that Pistorius would be a flight risk: Would he be "ducking and diving every day? On those prostheses?" he asks.
The defence has also raised this issue, lawyer Barry Roux saying Pistorius's disability meant he could never go through an airport without being noticed.
"If Pistorius goes through airport security, there's always a commotion, the system reacts. That shows you how difficult it is."
With both prosecution and defence arguments now completed, Magistrate Nair says he expects to make a decision on bail later tonight Australian time. He told the court his task in this case was "unenviable".
The hearing was adjourned on Thursday after a sensational third day where the lead detective on the investigation was sensationally kicked off the case after it emerged he was facing attempted murder charges.
Pistorius has admitted he fired the shots that killed his Steenkamp in the predawn hours of Valentine's Day.
He claims he mistook her for an intruder when he shot her through a locked door in a bathroom in his home.
Prosecutors said the shooting happened after the couple got into an argument and allege the killing was deliberate.
Aimee, Carl and Henke Pistorius have taken the same seats each day during the dramatic and emotional bail hearing for Oscar Pistorius, charged with the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. AFP
They are opposing bail, saying Pistorius could be a flight risk.
One feature of the hearing has been the silent presence of Pistorius's family.
Grim-faced and occasionally wiping away tears, his father Henke, older brother Carl and younger sister Aimee have occupied the same three seats in the front row of the court house each day. Oscar's mother Sheila - who the Olympian credits as the driving force behind his success - died when he was 15.
Carl Pistorius (@carlpistorius) has been tweeting regularly since Oscar' Pistorius's arrest a week ago.
During Thursday's hearing he accused prosecutors of lying “with a straight face” as judge Desmond Nair complained about the poor quality of evidence from investigating officers.
The police station in Pretoria where Oscar Pistorius has been spending his nights in a holding cell with no bed.
Carl Pistorius took the unusual step of tweeting from inside the courtroom to condemn prosecutors.
His tweet followed claims by Mr Nel, for the prosecution, that Oscar Pistorius remains a flight risk. He said that the athlete had said that he needed his passport to compete internationally, and that he had not said he would not go anywhere.
Moments afterwards, Carl, who was sitting behind his brother, tweeted: “How does the prosecution lie with a straight face. Passport was tendered to IO [investigating officer]! I went to collect in Johannesburg upon the IO’s request.”
Earlier, as Mr Nel summed up the prosecution's case opposing bail, Oscar Pistorius began to weep in the crowded courtroom, leading Carl to reach out and touch his back.
During breaks in the proceedings Carl walks through the gallery shaking hands with supporters. He regularly has his arm was wrapped protectively around Aimee while his other shoulder, is pressed tightly against his father's.
Carl Pistorius (right) accompanies his brother Oscar as the athlete is led from the Boschkop police station east of Pretoria, en route to court for his first appearance on February 15.
But later, after the dramas involving Hilton Botha and problems with the prosecution's evidence, Carl told reporters outside court: "I feel like the court proceedings went well today. We trust that everyone has more clarity about this tragic incident."
Oscar' Pistorius's official website has been turned over for updates on the case.
In the latest update, his uncle, Arnold Pistorius, said on behalf of the family: “We believe that this is an appropriate way to deal with the expressions of support we have received as well as keeping the media informed about any key developments in the case.
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