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“YOU KILLED A person, that’s what you did,” was the State’s reaction to Oscar Pistorius’s claim that he had made a mistake in the early hours of Valentine’s Day when he shot his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp through a locked bathroom door.
“You shot and killed her, won’t you take responsibility for that?” prosecution lawyer Gerrie Nel said impatiently to the witness box.
The 27-year-old athlete faced a fierce cross-examination from Nel throughout the day, with a particular shocking moment when a video of Pistorius shooting a watermelon was shown.
“You know that’s the same that happened to Reeva’s head,” Nel told his witness, who was becoming more emotional as the day wore on.
The lawyer then quickly showed the court a shocking photo of the victim after the shooting. She had blood-drenched hair and brain matter was visible.
That’s it. Have a look there, I know you don’t want to because you don’t want to take responsibility.
“My Lady, I’ve taken responsibility…I don’t want to look at a picture where I’m tormented by what I saw. I don’t have to see a picture. I remember it. My fingers touched her head,” he said through tears.
The victim’s parents were in court today and June Steenkamp told reporters during a break that she understands the reason for showing her daughter’s horrific wounds.
According to reporters at the courthouse, she was given warning that Nel would be using the image. The Steenkamps remained unemotional and stone-faced throughout the testimony, whispering to each other on a few occasions.
Judge Mapisa, however, did object to the comparison with a watermelon and asked for the picture being flashed to be removed.
Following an adjournment to allow Pistorius to compose himself, the arguments became more technical – about why some of his statements are slightly different to his bail application and why he is adamant that the scene was ‘tampered’ with.
Pistorius conceded that he did not go out to the balcony, as had been previously been claimed. He explained that he got the fan from the balcony but did not go out onto it.
Nel also accused the Paralympian of being overly-prepared for the cross-examination and not answering questions wholly and truthfully. The lawyer put it to him that he was thinking about the repercussions of everything he says.
Pistorius agrees, telling him that his life is on the line.
“Reeva doesn’t have a life anymore because of what you’ve done,” countered Nel, asking him to tell the truth and not to just “think of [the] implications for you”.
Earlier, Pistorius told the court that he “did not intend to kill Reeva or anybody else”. He also confirmed that Reeva had died in his arms.
The trial continues tomorrow at 8.30am (Irish time).
VIDEO: Oscar Pistorius apologises to family of Reeva Steenkamp
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The thoughts of allowing this ideology a place in our society is mind boggling.
@purple rain: What ideology?
@purple rain: like religion did no damage here
@A Piece of Chalk: the ideology that condones killing innocent people in the streets. It’s good that never happened in Ireland… oh wait…
probaly one of the many doctors they let in . why are we opening our door for this kind of thing to happen here , madness , what do we get out of it ,nothing, people out protesting over scientoly when we have the second biggest mosque in europe being built in Dublin and not a peep out of anyone , which one is worse.
@Elvis Polkasalad: Hi I am Irish living in Paris and can tell you that this sort of sentiment is not welcome here and is definitely not what we need right now. So please keep your islamophobia and assumptions to yourself.
@Elvis Polkasalad: Scientology is called a cult because it has 100,000 followers. Islam is called a religion because it has a billion followers. No one cult / religion is better or worse than the other. All of them are nutty.
@Elvis Polkasalad: hi I’m Irish living in Paris and can tell you that this sort of sentiment is not welcome here and is definitely not what we need right now. So please keep your islamophobia and assumptions to yourself.
@Earth Traveller: Where are the Scientologist suicide bombers? Some religions are definitely worse than others. One in particular.
@K8: it’s not a phobia if it’s a rational fear. Yes they’ll probably hold another vigil that’ll show the islamists
@Vote4Pedro: just to note islamophobia is not an actual “phobia”, rather it is defined as “the dislike of or prejudice against Islam or Muslims, especially as a political force”. We would marginalise less people if we could all stop jumping to conclusions before facts have been made clear
@K8: only arseholes pay any attention to the concept of islamophobia.
@K8: So once the facts are made clear , then can we jump to conclusions ? Or is that also frowned upon in Paris .
@Clinton Baptiste: it wouldn’t be jumping to conclusions if the above comment(s) had been made after the facts were made clear ??
@Kate Toner: islamaphobia: a word created by fascists and used by cowards to manipulate morons.
@Craig: nice, who taught you that?
@Dave O Keeffe: Christopher Hitchens.
@K8: just to note islamaphobia is defined as an irrational fear of islam! There is nothing irrational of fearing more terror attacks from this ideology. I think you living in paris should of seen enough to acknowledge that.
CBS News is reporting the attacker was shouting “allah akbar” as he waged jihad.
https://twitter.com/RealSaavedra/status/995397173180219393?s=19
@Dee O’Connoll: Fake News.
Further confirmation
“Assailant armed with a knife ‘shouted Allahu akbar’ while stabbing people”
@Dee O’Connoll: Fake News – no source for claim.
@Dee O’Connoll: maybe he was looking for Alan’s Snack bar.
@A Piece of Chalk: You were expressing a desire to see Israeli cities struck by nuclear weapons yesterday, you’re some dirt bag.
@Thought Criminal: How’s my little puppy enjoying his new leash that I got him?! Yap, yap, yap!
@Earth Traveller:
Excellent
@A Piece of Chalk: Paris knife attacker was ‘born in Chechnya’ as parents taken into custody http://jrnl.ie/4009916
Good
@bmul: What is?.
@RJ.Fallon: attacker dead obviously !
@RJ.Fallon: I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess he’s saying good that the attacker was shot dead.
@Dj: kinda obvious I thought
@John o connor: Ok.
@Dj: Ok.
@Dj: Yes ,but he left himself open.
@RJ.Fallon: to someone not getting an obvious meaning
Amazing support from hundreds of thousands of people across Ireland and the world this morning at 4.15am for Pieta House, for such a great cause. Its a shame the lefty liberals will claim this person has a mental illness. Absolutely disgusting to compare the people Pieta House help to this probably illegal, criminal.
@KingBen: You’re the only one making that mad leap, what a tragically desperate attempt to link the two to further your agenda.
@A Piece of Chalk: what agenda? Do tell.
@KingBen: Has anyone actually claimed that or are you just being a fuc4in a55hole by bringing the two together?
@Alan O’Melia: claimed what my man? Go for it.
@KingBen: Read your original comment. Have you forgotten what you wrote already?!
@A Piece of Chalk: I think it’s time I put an end to your latest copied account, bi polar boy.
^^^^^ Triggered!
@A Piece of Chalk: you said I have an agenda, explain please?
@A Piece of Chalk: you were more entertaining pretending to be Tariq from Bradford. Do you get your meds free or has that masters in History got you a job somehow?
@Michael Knight: You’re always 10 steps behind little fella!
@Michael Knight: free meds. He’s a liberal, doubt he pays tax.
@A Piece of Chalk: not really. It takes about 2 posts to figure out you’re the same bi polar gimp.
@Michael Knight: You seem very angry tonight little fella, did you lose a game of World of Warcraft against your online friends again?!
@A Piece of Chalk: don’t be so uptight Angela. I’ll give you a few day’s grace as usual. You can carry on during that time with one hand down your pants and the other on the keyboard.
@KingBen: I’m so glad you got out in front of this and managed to link Darkness into Light to this disgusting act. Fair play, credit where it’s due. No doubt someone else was going to do it if you didn’t
@Michael Knight: Ha ha! Such an angry little man! ;-)
Fair play to the boys in blue
…Islamist shot dead after committing an atrocity in Paris and Israel wins the Eurovision.
@KerryBlueMike: What’s funnier is that now Israel has to host one of the most liberal entertainment spectaculars on earth in a very different political environment to the last time they did. The Haredi and Shas will do their nut with all the gay people running around the place, the generally liberal politically left wing Eurovision fans will do theirs at the thought of having to go to Israel and in the middle of it all Hamas and about two dozen other Islamist groups will be trying to blow it all up…oh and for added fun and games Iran could start lobbing missiles at any second… Should be a cracking show alright…
He should have gone to mass instead besides going around stabbing people willy nilly
@Paul O Riordan: I think you mean to the mosque.
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