TheState PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA — A woman screamed and then there was silence, according to South African prosecutors pressing a premeditated murder case against Oscar Pistorius. Next, the indictment says, witnesses heard gunshots and more screaming at the home of the Paralympic champion, who says he shot his girlfriend by mistake on Valentine's Day.
The sequence of events outlined Monday could bolster an argument that the double-amputee Olympian was intent on killing Reeva Steenkamp after an altercation and was not reacting fearfully to what he thought was an intrusion in his home, as he has said. Prosecutors revealed a list of more than 100 witnesses, some of whom live in the gated community where she was killed.
Pistorius wept and prayed in court as he held hands with his brother and sister before being served with the indictment. The athlete will face an additional charge of illegal possession of ammunition when his blockbuster trial starts on March 3 in a court in the South African capital, Pretoria.
The indictment in the Pretoria Magistrate's Court yielded new details about how prosecutors will pursue a case that has gripped the world because of the celebrity status of Pistorius, who overcame his disability to become a global phenomenon, only to see his name and accomplishments tarnished by his role in a violent death. The timing of the indictment was melancholic because Steenkamp would have celebrated her 30th birthday on Monday.
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