Oscar Pistorius: South African court doubles sentence
A South African appeals court has doubled the sentence of the former paralympic champion for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in 2013.
A South African appeals court increased paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius' sentence for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp to 13 years and five months on Friday.
Pistorius sentence doubled from six years
The Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein more than doubled his original sentence of six years after the state appealed that it was unduly lenient.
Prosecutors argued earlier this month that Oscar Pistorius failed to show genuine remorse after killing his girlfriend.
"One of the essential ingredients of a balanced sentence is that it must reflect the seriousness of the offence," Andrea Johnson, of the National Prosecution Authority, told the court.
The Paralympic athlete shot dead Reeva Steenkamp in the early hours of Valentine's Day in 2013 when he fired four times through the door of his bedroom toilet. He pleaded not guilty at his trial in 2014 and has always denied that he killed Steenkamp in a rage, saying he mistook her for a burglar.
Steenkamp family trust the justice system again
The family of Reeva Steenkamp welcomed the increased sentence and said it showed that justice could prevail in South Africa.
"This is an emotional thing for them. They just feel that their trust in the justice system has been confirmed this morning," Tania Koen, a spokeswoman for the Steenkamp family, told Reuters.