Oscar Pistorius Found Guilty of Culpable Homicide

[muriel_volestrangler]

10. Pistorius verdict: judgment seemed to support charge of 'dolus eventualis'

South African lawyers argue if athlete could have foreseen someone could die, he should be guilty of common-law murder

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The South African legal system allows for different kinds of murder convictions, and the one that's relevant here is what is known as common-law murder with indirect intentions – or "dolus eventualis".

According to the law, someone is guilty of murder if they know that their actions could lead to the killing of a person and reconcile themselves to that fact, and act anyway.

In delivering her ruling, judge Thokozile Masipa said that "a reasonable person would have foreseen if he fired shots at the door, the person inside the toilet might be struck and might die as a result", which suggests a classic case of dolus eventualis.

But the judge seems to have cleared him of this charge because she felt that, to be guilty of common-law murder, Pistorius needed to have foreseen that his actions would kill a specific person – Reeva Steenkamp.
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Ulrich Roux is a South African barrister specialising in criminal law and director of the law firm BDK attorneys

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/12/pistorius-verdict-questioned-as-state-prepares-appeal?cmp=wp-plugin