Oscar Pistorius vomits in court during graphic testimony of his Murder Case

Hunched over, vomiting into a bucket by his feet and retching loudly, Oscar Pistorius was vividly reminded at his murder trial Monday of the gruesome injuries he inflicted on his girlfriend when a pathologist described how the Olympian fatally shot her multiple times with bullets designed to cause maximum damage.

The testimony by Prof. Gert Saayman, who performed the autopsy on Reeva Steenkamp's body, was so graphic that it was not broadcast or reported live on social media by journalists under an order from Judge Thokozile Masipa.

Saayman methodically listed the extent of the three main gunshot wounds Steenkamp suffered on Valentine's Day last year when she was shot by the double-amputee runner in the right side of the head, the right hip and the right arm through a toilet cubicle door.

he pathologist said Steenkamp, 29, was hit by special Black Talon bullets and that the head shot from Pistorius' 9 mm pistol was probably almost instantly fatal, causing brain damage and multiple fractures to her skull.

Bent over while sitting on a wooden bench, Pistorius vomited when Saayman reached his right hand up toward the right side of his own head to show the entrance and exit wounds in Steenkamp's skull.

Masipa briefly halted the testimony to ask chief defence lawyer Barry Roux to attend to his client. The judge later asked whether Pistorius was able to understand the proceedings as he sat with hands clasped over his ears, his body heaving.

"Is your client fine?" the judge asked Roux.

Roux replied: "It's not going to be fine."

Roux said Pistorius' reaction was not going to change. A dark bucket with a handle was placed at his feet.

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If convicted on the murder charge, Pistorius, 27, could be sent to prison for at least 25 years before the chance of parole, the minimum time someone must serve if given a life sentence in South Africa. The judge will ultimately deliver the verdict and decide on any sentence. South Africa has no trial by jury.

Read more: http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/oscar-pistorius-vomits-in-court-during-graphic-testimony-1.1721682

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The judge overseeing the murder trial of Oscar Pistorius on Wednesday ordered the double-amputee athlete to undergo psychiatric tests, meaning that the trial proceedings will be delayed.

The decision by Judge Thokozile Masipa followed a request for a psychiatric evaluation by the chief prosecutor, Gerrie Nel. The prosecutor had said he had no option but to ask for it after an expert witness for the defense testified that Pistorius had an anxiety disorder that may have influenced his judgment when he fatally shot his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp.

Masipa said the court was "ill-equipped" to assess the diagnosis by Dr. Merryll Vorster, and should therefore send Pistorius for a period of evaluation. She said it was important to assess the Olympic runner's state of mind because of questions raised by the prosecution that Pistorius might argue he was not criminally responsible because of his anxiety disorder.

http://www.philstar.com/business/2014/05/14/1323064/judge-says-pistorius-get-psychiatrist-test

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A South African judge on Friday found Olympic and paralympic track star Oscar Pistorius guilty of culpable homicide for the Valentine's Day shooting last year of his model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

As Pistorius stood impassively in the dock with his hands folded in front of him, Judge Thokozile Masipa read out her verdict, which could carry a sentence of up to 15 years in prison.
http://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFKBN0H70EB20140912

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