The trial of double amputee and former Olympian Oscar Pistorius began today with the "Blade Runner" pleading not guilty to the murder of his girlfriend, model Reeva Steenkamp. The case, which is transfixing South Africa, has dedicated two 24-hour television channels to the spectacle.
After the proceedings started 90 minutes late, Pistorius pleaded not guilty to the four charges against him, including murder and illegal possession of ammunition. He insists he thought Steencamp was an intruder when he shot her four times with a 9mm gun on Valentine's Day 2013. The case opened dramatically with a witness, a neighbor, telling the court she heard "bloodcurdling screams" from a woman followed by a round of gunfire.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
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.
-
Kill the Boer: Elon Musk and the anti-apartheid songUnder the radar Billionaire reignites controversy by linking South African 'struggle song' to 'white genocide'
-
Critics’ choice: Restaurants worthy of their buzzfeature A fun bistro, a reservation worth the wait, and a modern twist on Mexican dishes
-
Film reviews: Snow White, Death of a Unicorn, and The Alto KnightsFeature A makeover for Disney’s first animated feature, greedy humans earn nature’s wrath, and a feud between crime bosses rattles the mob
-
ABC News to pay $15M in Trump defamation suitSpeed Read The lawsuit stemmed from George Stephanopoulos' on-air assertion that Trump was found liable for raping writer E. Jean Carroll
-
Judge blocks Louisiana 10 Commandments lawSpeed Read U.S. District Judge John deGravelles ruled that a law ordering schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms was unconstitutional
-
Swearing in the UK: a colourful historyIn The Spotlight Thanet council's bad language ban is the latest chapter in a saga of obscenity
-
ATF finalizes rule to close 'gun show loophole'Speed Read Biden moves to expand background checks for gun buyers
-
Hong Kong passes tough new security lawSpeed Read It will allow the government to further suppress all forms of dissent
-
France enshrines abortion rights in constitutionspeed read It became the first country to make abortion a constitutional right
-
Texas executes man despite contested evidenceSpeed Read Texas rejected calls for a rehearing of Ivan Cantu's case amid recanted testimony and allegations of suppressed exculpatory evidence
-
Supreme Court wary of state social media regulationsSpeed Read A majority of justices appeared skeptical that Texas and Florida were lawfully protecting the free speech rights of users
