Oscar victorious: he's free, but under THESE conditions

Bladegunner: Oscar and sister Aimee leave court

 

OSCAR PISTORIUS, in case you hadn't heard, was granted bail on a charge of murder before the full glare of the world's media this afternoon. Clearly, that's something of a victory for the first amputee to compete in the able-bodied Olympics.

The man who put four bullets through his toilet door on Valentine's Day, killing his model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, has been cleared to live a normal life - at least until June 4 when the case resumes.

Tonight, on SportsTalk on www.702.co.za just after 7pm, we will be asking James Evans, the head of Athletics South Africa, if Oscar will be able to compete in the South African national championships in Cape Town on April 12 and 13. Just this morning, his coach, Ampie Louw, said he hopes to have him back on the track training by Monday.

But do his bail conditions allow Oscar to train... or even compete? Should they be harsher? Will he want to compete again given his apparent emotional state over the past four days in the dock? Oscar was due to spend a further night in Brooklyn Police station tonight as the R100,000 cash installment on his bail could not be paid by the end of the day.

But a last-minute deal with his highly-efficient defence team saw him whisked to an "upmarket home" in plush Waterkloof. After today's lengthy summation from magistrate Desmond Nair - which at one point touched on the Boer War - questions continue to be asked about the role of discredited Investigations Officer Hilton Botha - but for now attention must turn to Oscar's bail order.
 
These are the full set of conditions set by the long-winded Nair after a two-hour speech in Pretoria:

1 Oscar, who has already given up his passport, is not allowed near any airports without permission.

2 |(This is the best bit). He must surrender all firearms.

3 He cannot communicate with prosecution witnesses.

4 Pistorius has to inform authorities if he leaves Tshwane municipality.

5 He must be in contact with a state probation officer to asses his emotional state and receive counselling where necessary.

6 Pistorius is banned from consuming alcohol or drugs. He must take random alcohol and drug tests if instructed.

7 Magistrate Nair turned down the defence's request for R250,000 bail and instead instructed Pistorius to pay R1m - but said he could be released after a cash payment of R100,000.

8: He will return to court on June 4 when the case resumes.

9: He will NOT be permitted to stay at the crime scene, his home in the secure Silver Woods estate east of Pretoria.

10: Pistorius must not return to scene of the shooting, he cannot talk to residents except Stander family and contractors.

11: He must report to Brooklyn police station between 7am and 1pm every Monday and Friday.

What we know about Oscar Pistorius. And what we don't

Reeva and friends, retweeted on twitter by Francois Hougaard

There is a thin but comforting line between sport and news. This week, for obvious reasons, the vibrant world of goals, trophies and fans was rudely interrupted by the sound of gunfire.

Oscar Pistorius, the first amputee to compete in the able-bodied Olympics in London this year, is one of South Africa’s few globally recognised sporting stars. The news that he had shot his model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp simply shook the world we live in, turned sport upside-down.

Yes, Popes resign, meteorites flash across Russian skies, trains crash… and sport carries glibly on, reporting on Robin van Persie versus Cristiano Ronaldo, South Africa v Pakistan… even Bafana Bafana v Mali despite the war raging around Timbuktu.

But Oscar impinges. He is a genuine sporting hero. Loved by all for his tenacity in the face of being born with no shin bones, his ability to lead an superstar sporting life while most others would retire to a wheelchair and self-pity.

How do we cope when a star of that magnitude appears to be crashing and burning?

The initial tale – picked up wholeheartedly by the Oscar-sympathetic newspapers – suggested he had mistaken the beautiful Reeva for an intruder in his high-security estate. Tragic but accidental.

But once details from unnamed police sources emerged, that theory appeared to fall apart. By Sunday morning, we had suggestions of blood in the bedroom, a shot fired, a cricket bat used… and a frightened woman hiding in the bathroom. Then four bullets through the door.

Two of those bullets hit Reeva in the head. She did not die instantly. Lurid eye-witness reports suggest Oscar tried to resuscitate his girlfriend – though why he called a mutual friend rather than the emergency services to report the incident remain unexplained.

All we can say with any confidence before Oscar’s return to court on Tuesday is that he pulled the trigger, he - and he alone - killed the woman he called “baba”.

With former Sun editor Stuart Higgins arriving to provide “positive spin” to his heavyweight legal team, we read of Oscar’s father Henke telling the UK Sunday Telegraph: “Crime is endemic in South Africa. When you see somebody in your house, you shoot.”

He went on to explain how “Oscar grew up hunting, my sons grew up with guns” and he said Oscar's action were "instinctive - and sportsmen react to instinct" but that hardly explains the need for small arms in a secure estate – or why Oscar had SEVEN more gun licences pending.

It doesn’t explain recent incidents involving the police where Oscar had lost his cool with so-called “love rivals” Quinton van den Bergh and Francois Hougaard.

As journalists – even sports journalists – we are trained not to pre-judge issues until all the facts come to light. In this case, we must attempt to stick to that creed.

But it’s damned difficult.

I’ve spoken to a lad who went to Constantia Primary with Oscar. He says, disabled or not, Pistorius was a bully. That he was cock of the walk at Pretoria Boy’s High. That he was, predictably for a sporting celebrity, surrounded by sycophantic yes men who let him act as he pleased.

The more recent of the many women in his life suggest he was not the most chivalrous of men. Others talk of his parents' divorce, his mother's death. A bloke who, for all his talent, went the way of so many top sportsmen... down the road of arrogance, shagging and insecurity

And always, in the background, the beautiful Reeva, loved by all. Gone.

Given recent cases – Shrien Dewani and Nico Henning spring to mind, just have a look on Google – it’s hard to believe in justice for the well-off and famous. But we must. On Tuesday, let’s hear what forensics have to say. If today's police leaks were accurate. How Oscar’s legal team explain away the shooting of multiple bullets at an apparently defenceless woman.

And hope that justice is done.

This story will appear as my Neal and Pray column in www.thenewage.co.za on Tuesday.