7/25/2019 Oscar Pistorius trial verdict watch,expert predicts 8 years,Judge Masipas record

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Oscar Pistorius trial verdict watch,expert predicts 8

years,Judge Masipas record

Oscar Pistorius and the rest of the world is on verdict watch for one of the most highly anticipated

verdicts in the history of high profile murder trials. This is particularly true in South Africa, a

country that has been gripped with pain, horror, and grief, on so many levels since the death of

Reeva Steenkamp. Since March of this year, Oscar Pistorius has stood trial for the murder of Reeva

Steenkamp, after shooting her four times through a closed and locked bathroom door in the early

morning hours of Valentine's Day 2013. It will all be up to Judge Thokozile Masipa to decide, who

will begin to deliver her verdict in the Oscar Pistorius trial as scheduled on September 11 according

to the CBC September 10.

The media has begun to fill the streets in Pretoria, South Africa, and they are not alone. The

Twittersphere is also on verdict watch in the Oscar Pistorius trial, praying for justice for Reeva

Steenkamp.

Photo by Pool/Getty Images

Was it an accident based on mistaken identity as Oscar Pistorius has contended since day one of the

Oscar Pistorius trial? Or was this tragic event the result of a trigger event occurring in the mind of a

gun friendly and temper hungry individual as the State contends?

The CBC is also reporting on the extensive legal process still facing Oscar Pistorius, and how the

reading of the verdict will play out in Pretoria, South Africa tomorrow. The world will be watching.

The Oscar Pistorius trial is one high profile murder trial that has a sharply divided audience. One

side does not want to believe that the multiple gold winning Paralympic athlete and history making

Olympian could be capable of such an act.

The other side thinks Oscar's athletic accomplishments do not put him above the law, and that he

should be held accountable for shooting at Reeva Steenkamp 4 times. As previously reported, in

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addition to first degree murder charges, Oscar Pistorius is also facing 3 gun charges in this case.

Guns have a tendency to go off a lot "accidentally" around Oscar Pistorius, those that believe he

should be found guilty of killing Reeva Steenkamp are also hoping that Judge Masipa takes these 3

gun charges just as seriously.

But will she? Her record appears to suggest that crimes against women do not go over very well for

Judge Masipa. How will she see that things play out tomorrow?

The verdict process that occurs in Pretoria, South Africa, is unlike the verdict process in America.

Tomorrow will only be the reading of the verdict, according to CBC. Those that are hoping for a

guilty verdict and an immediate sweep off to South African prisons will be disappointed. Judge

Masipa will begin to make her verdict tomorrow, and that could take as long as two days of court

time.

A verdict then will be read either tomorrow or Friday, but the reading of Judge Masipa's process and

reasoning in her verdict will begin September 11. Following that, if a guilty verdict is read, Judge

Masipa will set a new date for a sentencing trial which would be expected within a few weeks.

The four possible verdicts on the first degree murder charge alone include premeditated murder,

murder, culpable homicide, and not guilty. A premeditated murder for Judge Masipa would be one

that Oscar Pistorius planned with "malice aforethought." If this is the verdict she makes, she will

have to show evidence presented that leads her to this conclusion.

Judge Masipa will read the verdict by discussing each witness, one by one, and the evidence

presented. Essentially, she will tell the court what she finds to be accurate and truthful, and what

she does not.

So although there may not be a sentence coming to Oscar Pistorius tomorrow, the court of publicopinion will know precisely where her mind has been at for the duration of the trial. She will tell the

court what she did and did not believe, and what evidence she does find reasonable, and how that

evidence supports her decision.

In the event Judge Masipa finds Oscar Pistorius

guilty of premeditated murder, he faces life in

prison with no possibility of parole for 25 years.

If she finds him guilty of simply murder, thatmeans that she finds that he intended to kill

someone as his indictment states, but that no

planning was involved. This charge carries a

mandatory 15 year prison term.

Culpable homicide is another verdict Judge

Masipa will have considered prior to court

tomorrow. This charge indicates that a homicide

occurred, as has been found by the Medical Examiner as cause of death in this case. Unlike the other

two more serious charges however, this charge indicates simple negligence that resulted in a killing,and not an intentional killing.

If Judge Masipa truly believes that the evidence finds that Oscar Pistorius was afraid when he pulled

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the trigger four times on Reeva Steenkamp, and that he was acting in fear and in order to protect

both of them from intruders that evening, she may find him guilty of this. A charge of this nature,

depending on the circumstances and the judge, carries sentences that range from fines up to a 15

year prison term.

If on the other hand she finds that Reeva Steenkamp was the only person legitimately afraid of

attackers that night, Oscar Pistorius has a very tough road ahead of him. Alternatively, Judge Masipa

can find him not guilty of this crime and then in fact this will all be over sooner than later.

However, he still has 3 gun charges regarding accidental shootings that occurred in his presence,

and improper possession of ammunition charges. Each of these charges carries a sentence of up to 5

years.

Any of the verdicts that will be read tomorrow, will be the culmination of decisive thought and

communication that has occurred between Judge Masipa and her two advisors during the course of

this trial. There are ultimately 3 people determining the outcome of this trial, and Judge Masipa has

not come to this decision alone. She presides over this court and likely has the strongest and final

say, but her advisors have helped her come to the decisions she has arrived at.

A summary of the witnesses, followed by a summary of those findings, will be presented before the

verdict in the Oscar Pistorius trial tomorrow. These procedings could go well into Friday. If there

will be a sentencing trial, both sides will again have opportunities to present witnesses and

testimony. However sentencing would not occur for some time, possibly weeks, after the verdict is

read.

A criminal defense lawyer working out of Cape Town, South Africa, told the New Zealand Herald this

week that he anticipates Oscar Pistorius will be found guilty tomorrow, and that ultimately will be

sentenced, but not by much.

Attorney Keith Gess told the New Zealand Herald this week that Judge Masipa is not likely to accept

the States contention that Oscar Pistorius planned this killing, thus ruling out premeditated murder.

He also said,

"But [Pistorius lawyer Barry] Roux knows his client will not walk away free, so he has been trying to

steer the case towards culpable homicide. I expect the verdict will be either murder or culpable

homicide."

Criminal law professor with Witwatersrand University in Johannesburg, South Africa, Stephen Tusonagrees. He said,

"The talk in the corridors is that Pistorius will serve between 8 and 12 years."

According to the New Zealand Herald, "The talk in the corridors" that Tuson discusses occurring at

Witwatersrand University also concurs that most of the evidence presented in the Oscar Pistorius

trial is heavily "weighed against the athlete." Lawyers at the university discuss how the multiple

stories that the defense has presented have been damaging to his credibility, and that damage is

likely not to be overcome with superhero athlete status alone.

If a conviction is read tomorrow, a sentencing trial will occur that will be very similar to the retrial of

the sentencing phase that Jodi Arias is preparing for right now in the Jodi Arias trial for the murder

of her lover as well. Witnesses, including the Steenkamp family, could be present and testify at this

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trial according to CTV News today.

Psychiatrists may be called to argue or testify for a weak sentence, and the list will go on until all

parties have had their say in court one way or another. CTV also reports today that if a guilty verdict

is read tomorrow, an "appeal is likely".

However Oscar Pistorius would not be able to begin his appeal until after sentencing.

At that point, Pistoriuis would be entitled to appeal conviction, sentence, or both. This is why Judge

Masipa must first be as thorough as possible when she is reading and determining her verdict.

What do you think will play the most weight on the decision by Judge Masipa and her two advisors?

Do you think the allegations that Oscar Pistorius is abusive and a narcissist, and that these traits led

to Reeva's death will play a large role in the decision for Judge Masipa?

If they do, based on her past history of verdicts in crimes against women, she may well throw the

book at Oscar Pistorius. If Judge Masipa believes that Reeva Steenkamp was afraid of Oscar

Pistorius when she was behind that closed and locked door, in the comfort and safety of their own

home, the world may not see Oscar for a very long time.

The Toronto Relationships Examiner has previously reported on some of her records where she has

ruled in cases that involved violence against women. She is by all accounts known among her

colleagues as "a judge impassioned by crimes against women" according to Sports News World this

week.

Sports News World cited two cases reported on by the Independent, that are very revealing of Judge

Masipa's position on abuse and violence against women. In one case, she ruled a 252-year sentence

to a rapist noting,

"The victims had been attacked in the sanctity of their own homes where they thought they were

safe."

In another case, a police officer was found guilty of killing his estranged wife, and she did not allow

the fact that he was a respected police officer sway her decision in this case. She gave him a life

sentence for shooting a woman over an issue as minute as their divorce settlement. In her ruling she

said,

"You deserve to go to jail for life because you are not a protector. You are a killer."

Will it come down to whether or not Judge Masipa believes Oscar Pistorius was trying to protect him

and Reeva against an intruder that night? Or whether or not she believes Oscar Pistorius was

shooting at a terrified woman that night? In the slideshow the media frenzy has already started to

buzz in Pretoria, South Africa, as has the Twittersphere who is on verdict watch and waiting for

justice for Reeva Steenkamp.

The video shown here also shows a different perspective, as Robert Shapiro, lawyer in the O.J.Simpson trial gives his verdict in the Oscar Pistorius trial. What do you think should happen?