Tomorrow · 7:30 PM UTC
Coach Caslin Classic
Oct 13, 12:15 PM UTC
Chicago Marathon
Oct 25, 4:00 PM UTC
CCAA Cross Country Championships
Oct 26, 12:30 PM UTC
GSC Cross Country Championships
Oct 27, 8:50 AM UTC
Frankfurt Marathon
Oct 27, TBD
NE10 XC Championship
Nov 1, TBD
Big East Champ
Nov 2, 4:00 PM UTC
SCIAC Women's Cross Country Championship
Nov 2, 4:45 PM UTC
SCIAC Men's Cross Country Championship
Nov 20-21, 4:00 PM UTC
TRE LIVE
Nov 21, TBD
Cross Champs
Dec 6, TBD
GVSU Holiday Open
Dec 6, 4:00 PM UTC
Art Kadish Elm City Challenge
Dec 7, 3:00 PM UTC
BU Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener
Jan 17-19, 2025, 5:30 PM UTC
VA Showcase

Oscar Pistorius Granted Bail

Oscar Pistorius Granted Bail

Feb 22, 2013 by Christopher Chavez
Oscar Pistorius Granted Bail


South African Chief Magistrate Desmond Nair decided Olympic runner Oscar Pistorius has been granted bail pending his trial on the premeditated murder charge in the Valentines Day shooting of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. 

"I cannot find that it has been established that the accused is a flight risk," Nair said. 

As Pistorius listened to the Nair's recount his story from the fateful night, he held his head down, trembled, and broke down in tears. A similar scene has been seen each day of the hearing with emotions running high for the Olympian. 

The tension on the faces of the Pistorius family members was lifted after Nair's ruling as they knew he was able to come home.

The athlete commonly referred to as Blade Runner will not be allowed to return to his home in Pretoria or contact others within the gated community. Among other conditions, he must also report to a police station twice a week. Pistorius also agreed to surrender his travel documents to pose no threat of fleeing the country.  

The bail posted approximately converts to $113,000 with $11,300 to be provided in cash and the rest needs to be proved available. No house arrest has been applied on Pistorius, but he can not drink alcohol or leave Pretoria without permission.

Pistorius and the defense team continue to claim the double-amputee mistook Steenkamp for a burglar in the middle of the night and accidentally shot her through the bathroom door. 

On Friday, Prosecutor Gerrie Neil continued to point out Pistorius has the resources to flee the country if he was granted bail. The example of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was used as a popular face on the run from his trial. 

The flee possibility point was also made by Hilton Botha, the first detective on the scene. The courtroom laughed at his statement, which was just one of several points where the prosecution's case was weakened. Nair also noted the prosecution failed to show Pistorius was prone to violence. 

Botha was removed from the case on Thursday after it was revealed he faced seven attempted murder charges from a 2011 incident. The policeman also revealed there was a possibility the crime scene was contaminated as police failed to properly categorize evidence. 

One theory as to why the prosecution made such a heavy push for no bail is so Pistorius could be forced to speak and give his side. Neil and his team were very critical as to why the defense team only submitted an affidavit and did not allow the Olympian to speak on the stand. 

Nair said he did not believe the state had any objective facts to support their case. He also went on to point out mistakes in Botha's testimony where he did not verify cellphone data for Steenkamp and did not follow up on Pistorius' phone records.

Nair said "(Botha) could have done more" and blundered on the issue of testosterone being found in the home as well as taking a second urine sample but not sure what happened to the first. 

To be clear, Nair said the mistakes by Botha do not kill the prosecution's case, but much more investigation has to take place before the trial begins. The only person that can tell what happened the night of February 14th is Pistorius and yet there are some possible holes in the accused's story, according to Nair. 

Nair decided the matter be treated as a schedule six offence at the beginning of the hearing and it will be treated as such in the trial. Nair admitted the evidence for premeditated murder was circumstancial. This caused a blow to the defense's argument as they wanted to downgrade it from pre-meditated murder to culpable homicide. 

The case is set to resume on June 4th. 

A close friend and the mother of the slain model were present at the final day of the bail hearing, but said they would not issue a statement regarding the decision of allowing Pistorius bail. 

Coach Ampie Louw previously said Pistorius could resume training next week. According to his agent, all of his 2013 races have been cancelled including two March races in Australia and the Drake Relays in April.

In the meantime, BBC has decided to pick up the Oscar Pistorius story as a documentary for an hour long "fast-turnaround" special. Stay tuned for more details on that as well. 

Chris Chavez is a Flotrack contributor and journalism major at Marquette University. He has worked on Flotrack's coverage of the Oscar Pistorius case since the shooting news broke on February 14th. Feel free to follow him on Twitter: @Chris_J_Chavez

Related Content