PAROLED
Explainer — What will happen to Oscar Pistorius when he is released from jail?
Former Paralympic star Oscar Pistorius will be released from prison on Friday after he was granted parole nearly 11 years after killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
Here is a look at what will happen to Pistorius after his release under South africa’s so-called restorative justice programme.
What will happen to Pistorius after his release?
Pistorius — known as the “Blade Runner” for his carbon-fibre prosthetic legs — became eligible for parole in March 2023 after he had served half of his 13 years and five months sentence for murder.
He was granted parole on 24 November, to take effect on 5 January.
Read more in Daily Maverick: Pistorius to walk free — after chequered justice experience in prison
South Africa’s Department of Correctional Services (DCS) said in November that Pistorius will complete the remainder of his sentence in the country’s community corrections system.
He will be under the supervision of the DCS and will be subjected to parole conditions until his sentence expires in December 2029.
He will be assigned a monitoring official, who will have to be kept informed when Pistorius is seeking job opportunities or moving homes.
As part of the conditions, Pistorius will also have to attend programmes on gender-based violence and continue therapy sessions on anger management, a lawyer for the Steenkamp family said shortly after he was granted parole.
He is expected to live in Pretoria.
What was considered for his early release?
Several factors are typically taken into account by a parole board, including the nature of the crime, the possibility of reoffending, conduct in prison, physical and mental well-being and potential threats a prisoner may face if released.
Prior to his parole, Pistorius also participated in the restorative justice programme — a system introduced after the end of apartheid to deal with apartheid-era crimes in a more participative and reconciliatory way.
It is based partly on how indigenous cultures handled crime long before Europeans colonised South Africa, with the aim of bringing affected parties in a crime together to find closure, rather than merely punishing perpetrators.
An integral part of the restorative justice programme is a victim-offender dialogue that brings parties affected by a crime together to try to achieve closure. Participation is voluntary.
Pistorius was moved to a prison closer to where the Steenkamp family stayed in late 2021, ahead of reconciliation talks aimed at a potential early release from prison.
He and the late Barry Steenkamp — Reeva’s father — participated in the victim-offender dialogue on June 22, 2022.
What has been the reaction to his early release?
The Steenkamp family’s lawyer said in November that they were not surprised by the parole decision, issued after Pistorius had completed a set portion of his sentence.
In the run-up to the parole hearing, Reeva Steenkamp’s mother June released a statement saying she was not convinced Pistorius had been rehabilitated. However, she said she had no objections to his release.
After Pistorius was granted parole, June Steenkamp lauded the parole board’s efforts in involving the victims.
Pistorius’ lawyer and family did not comment. DM
(Reporting by Bhargav Acharya; Editing by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo, William Maclean)
Human nature of an individual does not change. He was spoilt as a child and he still is… a spoilt human being.
I wish the media would stop this sensationalism. The guy has served hie time, the clock cannot be turned back, so stop hounding him and the late Steenkamp’s family and allow them to get on with their lives. It’s not as if he was a dangerous serial killer that people need to know his whereabouts.
The point is that he has not in fact served his time: he is being released after 50% of his sentence has been served. And that despite showing no contrition or being honest around what happened. He will remain in a prison of sorts for the remainder of his life because he is seen by society as not only a killer, but a lier too.
I believe his sentence, and those of many like him, was far too lenient. He showed no remorse and continues to deny responsibility. Parole should only be granted after two thirds of the sentence had been served. In any case he should have got 20 years.
Reeva RIP
When a convicy is released on parole, he/she continues to serve their sentence in the community according to the terms of their release e.g. community service, curfew, confined to a specific address, cannot travel, etc. not unlike house arrest. The idea is to afford the person an opportunity to turn over a new leaf, be employed and become a productive member of society.