Oscar verdict tomorrow but legal drama might not be over

20 October 2014 - 02:00 By Graeme Hosken
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TIME'S UP: Oscar Pistorius is due to be sentenced in Pretoria tomorrow
TIME'S UP: Oscar Pistorius is due to be sentenced in Pretoria tomorrow
Image: SIPHIWE SIBEKO/EPA

As Oscar Pistorius prepares for what could be his last meal as a free man, the focus is on whether prosecutors or his lawyers will appeal against his sentence.

Pistorius, found guilty of the negligent killing of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, will be sentenced in the Pretoria High Court tomorrow.

Wits School of Law expert Stephen Tuson believes that the process might not be over.

"We cannot speculate as to which side, if either, will appeal," he said.

Tuson said Pistorius's lawyers had secured an exceptional verdict by avoiding a murder conviction.

Pistorius was charged with premeditated murder after he shot dead Steenkamp on StValentine's Day last year in his Pretoria home. Prosecutor Gerrie Nel contended that the shooting followed a heated argument.

Tuson said it was debatable whether the prosecution would appeal against the verdict.

"It is a question of law," said Tuson, "of whether the wrong interpretation of the law was used by the judge to arrive at the verdict, and of whether the prosecution believes the judge's interpretation on the facts of what constitutes dolus eventualis was flawed, in that he could have foreseen that his shooting could have killed Steenkamp."

He said both the prosecution and the defence could choose to appeal the sentence as too lenient or too severe.

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