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26.08.2016 South Africa

Pistorius: from Olympic glory to jail for murder

By AFP
A South African judge on Friday rejected an appeal by the state against a six-year jail sentence for Paralympian Oscar Pistorius.  By Marco Longari POOLAFPFileA South African judge on Friday rejected an appeal by the state against a six-year jail sentence for Paralympian Oscar Pistorius. By Marco Longari (POOL/AFP/File)
26.08.2016 LISTEN

Johannesburg (AFP) - A South African judge on Friday rejected an appeal by the state against a six-year jail sentence for Paralympian Oscar Pistorius who murdered his girlfriend in 2013.

Prosecutors had protested against the length of term -- which is less than half the minimum for murder in South Africa -- as "shockingly lenient".

Here is a timeline of events that followed the shooting of Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine's Day in 2013.

- 2013 -
February 14: Police arrest the double-amputee Olympic and Paralympic sprinter for killing Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model, who was shot four times at his Pretoria home.

Oscar Pistorius of South Africa celebrates after winning the final of the men39;s 200 metre T44 classification event at the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games Oscar Pistorius of South Africa celebrates after winning the final of the men's 200 metre T44 classification event at the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games

February 15: Pistorius bursts into tears as he is charged, denying murder "in the strongest terms".

February 19: Pistorius claims in an affidavit he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder. He fired through a locked bathroom door in what prosecutors term "premeditated" murder.

February 21: Global sportswear manufacturer Nike suspends its sponsorship contract with the athlete.

February 22: Pistorius is granted bail.
- 2014 -
March 3: The trial opens in Pretoria before an army of journalists from around the world, with the testimony of a neighbour who tells the court she heard "terrible screams" from a woman. Ten days later, Pistorius vomits when a picture of Steenkamp's body is flashed on the court's television screens.

April 7-15: Pistorius takes the stand and begins with a tearful apology to Steenkamp's family. This is followed by five days of often intense cross-examination, marked by bouts of tears and breaks in the session. Pistorius steadfastly denies any intention to kill Steenkamp.

Reeva Steenkamp was shot dead on valentine39;s Day in 2013 Reeva Steenkamp was shot dead on valentine's Day in 2013

June 30: After a six-week break, a panel of three psychiatrists and a psychologist conclude that Pistorius does not suffer from mental illness.

September 12: Judge Thokozile Masipa finds Pistorius guilty of culpable homicide or manslaughter.

October 21: The judge sentences him to a maximum of five years in jail. He is immediately taken to Pretoria prison.

- 2015 -
October 20: Pistorius is allowed out of prison after just one year to spend the remainder of his sentence under house arrest.

December 3: The Supreme Court of Appeal convicts him of murder, saying his testimony was "vacillating and untruthful".

December 8: Pistorius is released on bail pending sentencing, and remains under house arrest.

- 2016 -
March 2: Pistorius, now 29, loses his final bid to appeal his murder conviction.

July 6: He is sentenced to six years in jail for murder, but prosecutors later appeal.

August 14: South African media reports say Pistorius is put on 24-hour suicide watch.

August 26: Masipa, the same judge who issued the six-year term, rejects the state appeal for a longer sentence.

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