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Live Updates: The Oscar Pistorius murder trial
The murder trial of Oscar Pistorius moves into day 12 as South Africa prepares for what is expected to be a long, protracted legal battle.
The case so farDouble-amputee Olympian Oscar Pistorius, on trial for the murder of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, was aware of South African firearms and self-defence laws that say you cannot shoot at an intruder unless your life is in danger, a court heard on Monday.Testifying on day 11 of the trial, firearms instructor Sean Rens read out a gun licence test passed by the track athlete, who shot dead Steenkamp through a locked toilet door at his Pretoria home on Valentine's Day last year.[caption id="attachment_1438851" align="alignleft" width="380"]
File picture of Oscar Pistorius. AP[/caption]One of the questions asked whether a home-owner was allowed to open fire on burglars on the other side of a security gate.Pistorius answered: "No", Rens, who taught Pistorius gun safety and sold him weapons, told the court. Asked in the test about the legal basis for using lethal force, Pistorius answered: "The attack must be against you, a person and be unlawful." In answer to another scenario, Pistorius replied: "No, life is not in danger." Pistorius also made clear that a gun-owner should never shoot unless he was knew what he was shooting at, and what lay behind the target: "Know your target and what lies beyond," Rens said, quoting Pistorius' answer. The Paralympic gold medallist, known as the "Blade Runner" on account of his carbon-fibre prostheses, denies the murder charge, saying he shot Steenkamp in a tragic accident after mistaking her, through the door, for a night-time intruder.Read the full report HERETariq Engineer is a sports tragic who willingly forgoes sleep for the pleasure of watching live events around the globe on television. His dream is to attend all four tennis Grand Slams and all four golf Grand Slams in the same year, though he is prepared to settle for Wimbledon and the Masters.
First Published:Mar 18, 2014, 13:34:02 IST
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