- Title: S. AFRICA-PISTORIUS/PAROLE South African justice minister blocks Pistorius parole
- Date: 19th August 2015
- Summary: CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA (AUGUST 19, 2015) (REUTERS) SOUTH AFRICAN JUSTICE MINISTER, MICHAEL MASUTHA, AT ENCA STUDIOS BEING INTERVIEWED SOUNDBITE (English) SOUTH AFRICAN JUSTICE MINISTER, MICHAEL MASUTHA, SAYING: "The matter was brought to my attention by a woman's human rights organisation, which wrote two days ago requesting that I reconsider my decision of the parole board to place Mr. Pistorius on parole with effect from tomorrow, when he shall have completed one-sixth of his sentence on 10 months in terms of the decision by the court. In terms of the relevant provisions of the law, an inmate must have completed at-least one-sixth or 10 months of his sentence before he can be considered for parole, so it is not conceivable that the parole board could have lawfully considered his application before the lapse of that minimum period. So on that basis I decided to refer the matter for review as provided in the act with the national council of correctional service, which is the parole review board in this instant." WIDE OF MASUTHA TALKING SOUNDBITE (English) SOUTH AFRICAN JUSTICE MINISTER, MICHAEL MASUTHA, SAYING: "First of all I have indicated that I do not have the power to review this decision by the parole board in this instance, I only have the authority to refer the matter for review by the review parole board, I also indicated to them...(woman's right organisation) that the grounds on which they were asking for me to consider the matter was not valid in law, and therefore I rejected those grounds, however, I could not ignore the fact that in my view that the parole board had not applied the law correctly in this case." MASUTHA TALKING SOUNDBITE (English) SOUTH AFRICAN JUSTICE MINISTER, MICHAEL MASUTHA, SAYING: "While I do not specifically take into account public opinion when I make decisions of this kind, my soul focus is on what the law requires and I take decisions based purely on my understanding of the legal prescribes." MASUTHA TALKING PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA (AUGUST 19, 2015) (REUTERS) VARIOUS EXTERIORS OF PRISON WHERE PISTORIUS IS CURRENTLY HELD
- Embargoed: 3rd September 2015 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: South Africa
- Country: South Africa
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA8D02RIP1THK2X4GPYN0JKTU6B
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Oscar Pistorius will not be freed on parole this Friday (August 21) because the decision to do so was made without the right legal basis, South Africa's justice minister said on Wednesday (August 19), shocking the athlete's family as they prepared for his homecoming.
The former Paralympic gold medallist had been expected to be released after serving 10 months of a five-year sentence for killing his model and law graduate girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine's Day 2013.
Justice Minister Michael Masutha said the parole board had wrongly taken a decision to release Pistorius on parole before the athlete had served a sixth of his sentence, as required by law.
"It is therefore clear that there is no legal basis upon which such a decision was made ... one sixth of a five-year sentence is 10 months and at the time the decision was made Mr. Pistorius had served only over six months of his sentence," Masutha said in a statement.
The minister said he had received a petition from the Progressive Women's Movement of South Africa opposing Pistorius' release on parole, saying it flouted the rules.
A family member said relatives had planned a "low-key welcome" for Pistorius on Friday. "We are shocked and disappointed that Oscar won't be home this Friday," the family member, who declined to be named, told Reuters.
Annelise Burgess, the family's official spokeswoman, said: "We accept the decision by the Minister of Justice and are considering our options."
Pistorius has admitted killing Steenkamp, 29, by firing four shots through the locked door of a toilet cubicle, saying he believed an intruder was hiding behind it.
Judge Thokozile Masipa said during sentencing the state had failed to convince her of Pistorius' intent to kill when he fired.
Prosecutors want the verdict of culpable homicide, equivalent to manslaughter, changed to murder because they argue Pistorius must have known when he fired that the person behind the door could be killed.
The athlete, nicknamed "Blade Runner" because of the carbon-fibre prosthetics he used during his career on the track, was expected to be confined to the home of his uncle, Arnold, a high-walled manor in the leafy suburb of Waterkloof. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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