South African prosecutors can appeal Oscar Pistorius manslaughter conviction

South African prosecutors can appeal Oscar Pistorius manslaughter conviction
(Image credit: Herman Verwey/Pool/Getty Images)

Paralympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius isn't out of the woods. On Wednesday, Judge Thokozile Masipa ruled that prosecutors in Pretoria can appeal his relatively light culpable homicide (i.e. manslaughter) conviction to the Supreme Court of Appeal. The prosecutors had argued that Masipa had misinterpreted a "questions of law" in the athlete's trial for the shooting death of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, and they want to try him again for murder. "This might have a practical effect on the conviction," Masipa said.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
Explore More
Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.