Oscar appeal date set for Dec 9

Oscar Pistorius reacts during judgment at the High Court in Pretoria. File photo: Phill Magakoe

Oscar Pistorius reacts during judgment at the High Court in Pretoria. File photo: Phill Magakoe

Published Nov 10, 2014

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Pretoria - Prosecutors on Monday said that their request to appeal Oscar Pistorius's culpable homicide conviction and five-year prison sentence would be heard on December 9.

The jailed Paralympian's legal team has opposed the move, setting the stage for a hearing before the High Court in Pretoria in a month.

The National Prosecuting Authority had described Pistorius sentence for killing Reeva Steenkamp as “shockingly light”.

Under law the double-amputee could serve just 10 months in jail.

The NPA said on Monday that it “believes there exists reasonable prospects of a successful appeal based on a question of law.”

Pistorius shot dead his 29-year-old girlfriend Steenkamp through a locked toilet door on Valentine's Day of 2013. He claimed he mistook her for an intruder.

The Judge Masipa found there was not enough evidence to convict him of premeditated murder, jailing him for five years, but the athlete could serve just one-sixth of that sentence in prison.

The prosecutors said in their papers that the judge “erred in over-emphasising the personal circumstances” of the athlete and the fact he was “anxious and 'seems remorseful'“ during the trial.

Pistorius is currently serving his sentence in the hospital section of Kgosi Mampuru prison in Pretoria. - AFP

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