Oscar Pistorius could soon be a free man

South Africa – Speculation surrounding the published photos of the Oscar Pistorius bloodied crime scene over the weekend could be a twist in his defense, and see him cleared from all charges against him, and soon be a free man.

Investigating Officer Hilton Botha was one of the first officers on the scene after the shooting of Reeva Steenkamp in February this year. During the bail hearing, he was removed from the investigating team. He commented on the released photos of the bloodied bathroom and said, the photos were probably taken a few days after the killing. He admitted to personally ordering the door to be removed and sent away for analysis, on Saturday a day after the fatal shooting.

Botha said the door was critical to the case and the pictures show the door panel smashed in. He said the published photos were not official police photos, and were taken with a mobile phone. He assumes the defense team may have seen raw crime scene photos before they were officially disclosed to lawyers and this could seriously impede the police investigation.

Oscar Pistorius will not be free man any time soon and will reappear in court on June 4 for his bail hearing. It is expected the case will be postponed again and a trial date set for early next year. The state has made a provisional list of the witnesses they would call, including his close friends.

Pistorius has been charged with premeditated murder. Although he denies murder he admitted to shooting through a closed bathroom door, believing he was being burglarized. The prosecution team will have to prove he is specifically guilty of the crime he has been charged with. Under the South African law, one cannot be charged tried twice for the same crime and if the state does not prove this, they will not be able to charge him with a lesser crime; he will be a free man.

We will discover that intent is the key to proving him guilty or if the defense team can prove otherwise then he will be declared innocent of a premeditated murder charge. It is evident that Oscar’s intention amounted to shoot to kill, and whoever was behind the bathroom door, be if a burglar or in this case his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, the prosecution team will show that Oscar had intended to kill, and he made the decision to use a firearm. If he had fired one shot, there would be a chance to prove his innocence, but to fire four shots would prove his intent beyond reasonable doubt.

The defense team of Oscar Pistorius will have to prove he did not intentionally kill his girlfriend. Botha admitted that the police manipulated evidence before presenting it to the defense and court. He admitted that the pictures of the door were not the same as the state’s team is planning to present. It would definitely show that there was tampering of evidence. Based on this new insight, Oscar can soon be a free man.

Written by Laura Oneale