Judgment

Pistorius Found Guilty of Manslaughter

Cleared of murder.

The judge who cleared Oscar Pistorius of murder charges yesterday found him guilty of culpable homicide, or manslaughter, in the shooting death of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp last year. Judge Thokozile Masipa announced the decision Friday after going through evidence point by point, as she did when she found the former Olympian not guilty of murder. On Thursday, she had telegraphed the manslaughter verdict when she described some of his actions as “negligent.” And she ultimately convicted him of unlawful killing. The track star’s defense team had argued that he killed his girlfriend in a panic, thinking she was an intruder and shooting her through a bathroom door at the home they shared. Pistorius also was found guilty of a lesser firearms charge. Pistorius was granted bail after the conviction, and will be sentenced on October 13. He could receive up to 15 years in prison—or be fined and spared incarceration entirely.