It was an emotional end to an emotional day. As those in court rose, waiting for Judge Thokozile Masipa and her assessors to leave the court room, an inconsolable Oscar Pistorius bent over; his agonised, gut-wrenching sobs the only sound to be heard.
Pistorius had broken down uncontrollably as he described what he saw in the early hours of February 14 last year, after he tore down the toilet door in his bathroom to find the lifeless body of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. Steenkamp's mother June showed no reaction to Pistorius's sobs as she sat in the court gallery in the company of friends and family.
The athlete's family were visibly shaken, with many of them crying.
Testifying about the sequence of events that lead to the shooting, Pistorius told the court after the lunch adjournment that, after hearing the toilet door slam shut, he was convinced that an intruder was in his bathroom. Still on his stumps and believing Steenkamp was in the bedroom, Pistorius, supporting himself using the walls of his passage and bathroom, made his way to the toilet, he said. Outside the toilet door, with his pistol in his right hand, Pistorius said he again heard noises coming from behind the toilet door and, fearing that an intruder was about to exit, he fired four shots through the door.
He then shouted for Steenkamp again before making his way back to the bed and lifting himself onto it while talking to Steenkamp, whom he assumed was still in bed. When he realised that she was not, Pistorius began to search the bedroom for her.
He told the court how he opened the curtains before opening the balcony door and making his way onto the balcony where he screamed for help. After putting his prosthetic legs on and in a state of panic, Pistorius ran back to the toilet and tried to kick open the door, but to no avail. Unsure of whether Steenkamp was in the toilet, Pistorius - screaming, crying, and calling out to God for help - went back to the bedroom to retrieve a cricket bat. He said he then returned to the toilet and began to break down the door.
After hitting the door three times with the bat, Pistorius said he was able to use his hands to rip out a panel of the door, pull it off, stick his hand through it, pull out the key and unlock the door. It was then that Pistorius found Steenkamp lying motionless in the toilet. He told the court that he "sat over her and cried”.
“She wasn't breathing," he said. At this point, the Paralympian broke down and Judge Masipa called for a short adjournment. After leaving the court room with members of his family, Pistorius returned and his lawyer, Barry Roux, asked that, in the light of his client's emotional state, the court stand down. Judge Masipa granted Roux's request.
Pistorius will continue his testimony tomorrow.
Oscar Trial day 18
It appeared to be a difficult day for Paralympian Oscar Pistorius on the second day of his testimony in his trial for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
The day began with Pistorius reading out WhatsApp messages between him and Steenkamp, which were used by the defence to demonstrate the couple’s loving relationship in the months leading to her shooting on Valentine’s Day last year.
Pistorius became tearful while explaining to the court that he was besotted with Steenkamp and that the couple had been talking of a future together that included buying a property in Johannesburg. He told the court that Steenkamp had received hate mail for dating him.
After the tea adjournment, Pistorius's lawyer, Barry Roux, began leading his client through the firearms-related charges against him. He began with an incident in which Pistorius is alleged to have fired a shot through the sunroof of a car while driving back from the Vaal River with Samantha Taylor and Darren Fresco, both state witnesses.
While Pistorius admitted that when the group was pulled over for speeding, he had been irritated by a policeman who picked up his firearm from the seat of the car and emptied a bullet from the chamber, he denied that he had ever fired a shot, telling the court that the incident, "never happened M'Lady".
Pistorius also spoke about an incident at Tasha's restaurant in Melrose Arch, Johannesburg, when Fresco's gun, which he had asked to see, had gone off. He said that he blamed both Fresco and himself for the incident and maintained that he had made an offer to Tasha's owner Jason Loupis to pay for damages.
February 13 and 14
Roux then moved on to the events of February 13th 2013 and the early hours of the following morning.
Pistorius told the court that had been in Johannesburg from early on February 13th for meetings and had visited his friend Justin Divaris. Pistorius said that he and Steenkamp changed their original plans and decided to have a quiet night at his house, with Steenkamp preparing dinner when he arrived home just after 6pm that evening.
Pistorius told the court that the couple ate just after 7pm and then went up to bed. Because it was warm and the air-conditioning was not working, he opened the balcony doors in his bedroom and placed two fans in front of it to allow cool air to flow into the room.
He closed the curtains and he and Steenkamp spent time in bed, texting and talking on their phones, while chatting to each other in between. Pistorius said he was tired and had asked Steenkamp if he should bring in the fans and close the doors, but she told him that she would do it before she went to sleep.
He had earlier locked the bedroom door and placed his firearm under the left side of the bed, where he was sleeping due to a right shoulder injury. Roux then asked for a short adjournment for his client to change his clothes in order to demonstrate the difference in his height with and without his prosthetic legs on.
Pistorius returned wearing shorts and a white long-sleeve vest and stood next to the toilet door in the court room, first on his legs and then on his stumps.
The Blade Runner later testified that the heat in the room woke him up in the early hours of the morning of February 14th. Steenkamp, who was still awake, told him to go back to sleep, but Pistorius, seeing that the fans were still on but the lights were off, decided to bring them in.
Using the bed for support, Pistorius, on his stumps, made his way to the balcony door, brought the fans in, closed the curtains and locked the door behind him.
He said that it was then that he heard the sound of the bathroom window opening and, thinking that it was the sound of a burglar and realising that there was no barrier between him and the bathroom, he froze with fear. His first thought, Pistorius told the court, was that he needed to arm himself and get his gun to protect both himself and Steenkamp.
Still on his stumps, he moved to his side of the bed, grabbed his gun and moved to the passage in front of the bathroom, whispering to Steenkamp to "get down and phone the police". Pistorius said that at the entrance to the bathroom he began to shout at what he believed were burglars and again at Steenkamp to get down and phone the police.
He then heard the toilet door slam and assumed that the intruder was behind the door.
Oscar Trial: Day 18 summary
Pistorius had broken down uncontrollably as he described what he saw in the early hours of February 14 last year, after he tore down the toilet door in his bathroom to find the lifeless body of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. Steenkamp's mother June showed no reaction to Pistorius's sobs as she sat in the court gallery in the company of friends and family.
The athlete's family were visibly shaken, with many of them crying.
Testifying about the sequence of events that lead to the shooting, Pistorius told the court after the lunch adjournment that, after hearing the toilet door slam shut, he was convinced that an intruder was in his bathroom. Still on his stumps and believing Steenkamp was in the bedroom, Pistorius, supporting himself using the walls of his passage and bathroom, made his way to the toilet, he said. Outside the toilet door, with his pistol in his right hand, Pistorius said he again heard noises coming from behind the toilet door and, fearing that an intruder was about to exit, he fired four shots through the door.
He then shouted for Steenkamp again before making his way back to the bed and lifting himself onto it while talking to Steenkamp, whom he assumed was still in bed. When he realised that she was not, Pistorius began to search the bedroom for her.
He told the court how he opened the curtains before opening the balcony door and making his way onto the balcony where he screamed for help. After putting his prosthetic legs on and in a state of panic, Pistorius ran back to the toilet and tried to kick open the door, but to no avail. Unsure of whether Steenkamp was in the toilet, Pistorius - screaming, crying, and calling out to God for help - went back to the bedroom to retrieve a cricket bat. He said he then returned to the toilet and began to break down the door.
After hitting the door three times with the bat, Pistorius said he was able to use his hands to rip out a panel of the door, pull it off, stick his hand through it, pull out the key and unlock the door. It was then that Pistorius found Steenkamp lying motionless in the toilet. He told the court that he "sat over her and cried”.
“She wasn't breathing," he said. At this point, the Paralympian broke down and Judge Masipa called for a short adjournment. After leaving the court room with members of his family, Pistorius returned and his lawyer, Barry Roux, asked that, in the light of his client's emotional state, the court stand down. Judge Masipa granted Roux's request.
Pistorius will continue his testimony tomorrow.
Oscar Trial day 18
It appeared to be a difficult day for Paralympian Oscar Pistorius on the second day of his testimony in his trial for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
The day began with Pistorius reading out WhatsApp messages between him and Steenkamp, which were used by the defence to demonstrate the couple’s loving relationship in the months leading to her shooting on Valentine’s Day last year.
Pistorius became tearful while explaining to the court that he was besotted with Steenkamp and that the couple had been talking of a future together that included buying a property in Johannesburg. He told the court that Steenkamp had received hate mail for dating him.
After the tea adjournment, Pistorius's lawyer, Barry Roux, began leading his client through the firearms-related charges against him. He began with an incident in which Pistorius is alleged to have fired a shot through the sunroof of a car while driving back from the Vaal River with Samantha Taylor and Darren Fresco, both state witnesses.
While Pistorius admitted that when the group was pulled over for speeding, he had been irritated by a policeman who picked up his firearm from the seat of the car and emptied a bullet from the chamber, he denied that he had ever fired a shot, telling the court that the incident, "never happened M'Lady".
Pistorius also spoke about an incident at Tasha's restaurant in Melrose Arch, Johannesburg, when Fresco's gun, which he had asked to see, had gone off. He said that he blamed both Fresco and himself for the incident and maintained that he had made an offer to Tasha's owner Jason Loupis to pay for damages.
February 13 and 14
Roux then moved on to the events of February 13th 2013 and the early hours of the following morning.
Pistorius told the court that had been in Johannesburg from early on February 13th for meetings and had visited his friend Justin Divaris. Pistorius said that he and Steenkamp changed their original plans and decided to have a quiet night at his house, with Steenkamp preparing dinner when he arrived home just after 6pm that evening.
Pistorius told the court that the couple ate just after 7pm and then went up to bed. Because it was warm and the air-conditioning was not working, he opened the balcony doors in his bedroom and placed two fans in front of it to allow cool air to flow into the room.
He closed the curtains and he and Steenkamp spent time in bed, texting and talking on their phones, while chatting to each other in between. Pistorius said he was tired and had asked Steenkamp if he should bring in the fans and close the doors, but she told him that she would do it before she went to sleep.
He had earlier locked the bedroom door and placed his firearm under the left side of the bed, where he was sleeping due to a right shoulder injury. Roux then asked for a short adjournment for his client to change his clothes in order to demonstrate the difference in his height with and without his prosthetic legs on.
Pistorius returned wearing shorts and a white long-sleeve vest and stood next to the toilet door in the court room, first on his legs and then on his stumps.
The Blade Runner later testified that the heat in the room woke him up in the early hours of the morning of February 14th. Steenkamp, who was still awake, told him to go back to sleep, but Pistorius, seeing that the fans were still on but the lights were off, decided to bring them in.
Using the bed for support, Pistorius, on his stumps, made his way to the balcony door, brought the fans in, closed the curtains and locked the door behind him.
He said that it was then that he heard the sound of the bathroom window opening and, thinking that it was the sound of a burglar and realising that there was no barrier between him and the bathroom, he froze with fear. His first thought, Pistorius told the court, was that he needed to arm himself and get his gun to protect both himself and Steenkamp.
Still on his stumps, he moved to his side of the bed, grabbed his gun and moved to the passage in front of the bathroom, whispering to Steenkamp to "get down and phone the police". Pistorius said that at the entrance to the bathroom he began to shout at what he believed were burglars and again at Steenkamp to get down and phone the police.
He then heard the toilet door slam and assumed that the intruder was behind the door.
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