South Africa: State to Appeal Pistorius Case

Oscar Pistorius seen at the High Court in Pretoria

The National Prosecuting Authority has said that the State will appeal the sentence and conviction of Paralympian Oscar Pistorius for the killing of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

The State will appeal Paralympian Oscar Pistorius's conviction of culpable homicide and the sentence he received, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said on Monday.

"The appeal on conviction is based on the question of law," spokesman Nathi Mncube said in a statement.

"The merits and the demerits of the NPA's argument in this regard will become evident when we file papers for leave to appeal."

Last Tuesday Pistorius was sentenced to five years in prison for the culpable homicide killing of his girlfriend, law graduate and model Reeva Steenkamp.

For discharging a firearm at Tasha's restaurant in January 2013, he was sentenced to three years' jail, suspended for five years.

The sentences would run concurrently, Judge Thokozile Masipa ruled.

Mncube said that Prosecutor Gerrie Nel and advocate Andrea Johnson, had been studying the judgment, doing research and consulting legal experts to establish if there were sufficient grounds to lodge appeals.


"The prosecutors are now preparing the necessary papers in order to be able to file within the next few days." ...AllAfrica