A source at the High Court who is close to Masipa said she grappled for a long time with the point the Court of Appeal ruled she erred on. "It was difficult for her to decide whether it was murder or homicide," the source said. "She really struggled with that and took a long time to make her decision."
The source added that even though OP is now a convicted murderer, he could still be out of prison in just three years. "The maximum is 15 years for unintentional murder, as he has been convicted, he can even get 10 years and eventually only serve 30 per cent, so three years."
In an unusually terse response to the devastating news from the Court of Appeal this morning, the Pistorius family said they had "taken note" but would not comment further.
Criminal law expert Cliff Alexander says he doesn't believe this is the end of the matter. "I dont think it is the end of it. "I think we might probably, funds depending, see a Constitutional Court challenge on whether he received a fair trial trial by media so to speak. "There was huge pressure on everybody concerned, whether it affected the outcome of the trial is another story."
OP can appeal to the Constitutional Court on a point of constitutional law, such as a violation of his human rights, and some have suggested he might, on the grounds that the live streaming of his trial and the media glare around the case compromised its fairness.
However, a member of the prosecution team told one of the Telegraphs reporters earlier this week that both sides could use that tactic. "We could argue that our witnesses were intimidated by the fact the trial was televised and their evidence was compromised," she said. "The defence also never raised that during the trial, and the media did not put the gun in his hand."
It appears that the Judge President of Gauteng will decide whether Judge Masipa or someone else will sentence him.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...188/Oscar-Pistorius-appeal-decision-live.html
ullhair:
