MOSCOW, September 11 (RIA Novosti) – The trial of South African athlete Oscar Pistorius, who is charged with murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, has been adjourned for the day and Judge Thokozile Masipa will continue delivering the verdict Friday.
"I am of the view that the accused acted too hastily and used excessive force…it is clear that his conduct was negligent," Jude Masipa said shortly before adjourning the hearing.
"On the facts of this case I am not persuaded that a reasonable person with the accused's disabilities in the same circumstances would have fired four shots into that small toilet cubicle," the judge explained.
"Having regard to the size of the toilet and the caliber of the ammunition used in the firearm, a reasonable person with the accused's disability and in his position would have foreseen that if he fired shots at the door the person inside the toilet might be struck and might die as a result," Judge Masipa added.
Earlier, Masipa said that prosecutors in the trial of the six-time Paralympic champion failed to prove that the murder was premeditated and therefore Pistorius cannot be found guilty of murder.
"The evidence failed to establish that the accused had the requisite intention to kill the deceased, let alone with premeditation," Masipa said.
"The accused's erroneous belief that his life was under threat excludes murder by dolus eventualis [intentional killing of anyone]," the judge noted.
On February 14, 2013, the body of 29-year-old Reeva Steenkamp was found in Oscar Pistorius's house in Pretoria, the South African capital.
According to Pistorius, he woke up in the middle of the night and heard sounds coming from the bathroom. Thinking it was a robber, he shot several times at the closed door. When he opened it, he saw his girlfriend who died shortly afterward.
