MOSCOW, September 13 (RIA Novosti) - Reeva Steenkamp's mother, June Steenkamp is shocked by a court decision on Friday to acquit Oscar Pistorius on charges of murdering her daughter, according to reports released Saturday.
"We were shocked. Shocked. Disappointed. You know your heart drops because you just want the truth," Steenkamp"s mother was quoted as saying by Agence France Presse.
"And I can't believe that they believe that it was an accident," June Steenkamp said in her first reaction to the judgment.
On Thursday, Pistorius was found not guilty of premeditated murder and was instead convicted of culpable homicide, a less serious charge. Under South African law, to be convicted of murder with legal intent the person who fires the gun must have known the shots would be deadly. The conviction carries no mandatory sentence leaving details on punishment up to the judge. The court allowed the athlete bail before the verdict, which will be submitted on October 13-16.
On February 14, 2013, Oscar Pistorius, a South African amputee Olympic sprinter, six-time champion of the Paralympic Games, was charged for the murder of his girlfriend, model Reeva Steenkamp, after her body was found with gunshot wounds in the athlete"s bathroom.
According to media reports, 29-year-old Reeva Steenkamp planned to surprise her Paralympic boyfriend on Valentine's Day in 2013, however events turned for the worst when Pistorius mistook his girlfriend for an intruder in his home. Pistorius fired his 9-mm pistol four times through the closed bathroom door killing Steenkamp.
