Oscar Pistorius, a Paralympic champion and convicted murderer, was approved for parole on Friday, a decade after he fatally shot his girlfriend.
At 37, the South African athlete is set to leave prison after serving around eight years of a 13-year sentence, as reported by the Associated Press.
Nicknamed the “Blade Runner” for his double amputation and athletic prowess, Pistorius will be freed on January 5 but will remain under supervision for the remainder of his initially sentenced time.
Additionally, he’s obligated to engage in community service and participate in programs addressing anger management and violence against women.
Pistorius won’t be allowed to leave Pretoria, the location of the incident, without official permission. However, per South African protocols, he won’t be required to wear a monitoring device, a government spokesman said.
The parole ruling triggered outrage on social media:
Breaking: A terrible decision to parole Oscar Pistorius after just 9 years in prison for murdering Reeva. He will be out in January but must attend anger management therapy. What a joke. They have zero understanding of coercive control #HerNameWasReeva pic.twitter.com/BspEZGykAo
— Laura Richards BSc, MSc, MBPsS (@laurarichards99) November 24, 2023
Oscar Pistorius stole the life of Reeva Steenkamp, and served only 10 years in prison for it.
— Michelle Kosinski (@MichLKosinski) November 24, 2023
Now he’ll get to be out on parole and enjoy his family, while Reeva’s family will never have the joy of seeing her again.
Disgusting, Reeva Steenkamp didn’t get to live the rest of her life so why should he? This is very sad news and I feel for her family https://t.co/PE7GYmJA8J
— Paula Pearson (@pearsonp69) November 24, 2023
In 2013, Pistorius fatally shot Reeva Steenkamp, 29, on Valentine’s Day by firing four shots through his bathroom door, hitting Steenkamp on the other side.
While Pistorius claimed that he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder, prosecutors argued he killed her in a fit of anger during a fight.
Initially convicted of culpable homicide in 2014 and sentenced to five years in prison, Pistorius transitioned to house arrest after just a year, according to Reuters.
However, in 2015, an appeals court upgraded his conviction to murder. His 13-year prison sentence was imposed in 2017.
While not opposing Pistorius’ early prison release, Steenkamp’s mother, June Steenkamp, expressed doubt about Pistorius’ rehabilitation, as reported by AP News.
June Steenkamp, according to the Daily Mail, also stated she never believed Pistorius’ version of events. She mentioned at the parole hearing that she doubted his claim of mistaking the person in the bathroom for an intruder.
Nonetheless, she said she had “forgiven Oscar long ago, as I knew almost instantly that I would not be able to survive if I had to cling to my anger.”
