Pistorius family accept Pretoria High Court judgement
As Oscar Pistorius is getting ready to settle back in the Kgosi Mampuru Prison in Pretoria, the Pistorius family says it accepts the sentence handed down to him on a conviction of murder.
The former paralympian was given a six year behind bars today by the North Gauteng High Court for killing Reeva Steenkamp in February 2013.
Spokesperson for the Pistorius family, Annelise Burgess says they respect the law.
"It has always been their position that they accept the rule of law and that they respect the legal process. Nothing has changed expect the judgement and that's kind of the position they leave us in," she said.
Pistorius's legal team says it will not be appealing the sentence,but the State says it's not ruling out the possibility of appealing the sentence.
Malcolm Lutge of Durban-based MP Lutge Incorporated Legal Services who had expected nothing less than a ten year sentence, believes there wasn't much deviation from the original sentence handed down after Pistorius was initially found guilty of culpable homicide.
"He will be entitled to the same parole conditions that he was entitled to with respect to the five years which he has been sentence. Conceivably, he could be out of prison very shortly especially since he does have a physical [disability] which makes his life in prison difficult. I think that he will be out of prison in a short time," he said.
(File photo: Gallo Images)