A 30-day psychiatric assessment found Paralympian Oscar Pistorius did not suffer from any mental problems when his former girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp was killed last year.
The South African sprint runner allegedly shot Steenkamp during the early hours of Valentine's Day 2013. He claimed that he thought she was an intruder. Judge Thokozile Masipa agreed with the request of prosecutor Gerrie Nel in March to have the accused undergo psychiatric tests to identify whether he should be criminally held responsible for shooting his girlfriend. The trial was adjourned until June 30, wherein the results of the psychiatric tests were presented.
Nel, who stood before officials on Monday at the High Court in Pretoria, read the report prepared by the three psychiatrists who evaluated Pistorius.
"Mr. Pistorius did not suffer from a mental defect or mental illness at the time of the commission of the offense that would have rendered him criminally not responsible for the offenses charged," Nel told the court, as quoted by Businessweek.
Pistorius claimed that he fired four fatal shots behind a locked bathroom door. He didn't know it was his girlfriend because he couldn't hear whether the intruder was a man or a woman. The prosecutor, on the other hand, stated that the Paralympic killed his three-month girlfriend after a heated argument.
"At 177 metres away, if the scream was from the toilet, it is highly unlikely that the listener can hear the screams, let alone interpret the sound source reliably," sound expert Ivan Lin stated, according to Reuters.
Barry Roux, the defense lawyer for Pistorius, portrayed his client as someone who shared a good relationship with Steenkamp. But Nel said the athlete suffered from temper issues that prompted him to shoot his girlfriend.
If he's convicted, Pistorius will spend at least 25 years of his life behind bars. He has denied all charges against him.
