Judge finds Oscar Pistorius not guilty of murdering girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp

(Image credit: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

last updated 8 January 2015

On Thursday, after a long, heavily publicized trial, a judge in South Africa declared Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius not guilty of the murder of his girlfriend, model Reeva Steenkamp, on Valentine's Day 2013. Pistorius, a 27-year-old double-amputee whose prosthetic legs gave him the nickname "blade runner," said during his trial that he thought Steenkamp was an intruder when he shot her several times through a bathroom stall door in his house.

Judge Thokosile Masipa found that the prosecution hadn't proven its case that Pistorius committed premeditated murder — the most serious charge — or the lesser form of common-law murder. She will read her verdict on lesser charges after a break. Pistorius still faces the possibility of years in jail for "culpable homicide" (or manslaughter) and charges of discharging a firearm in public and unlawfully owning .38 bullets without a license.

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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.