By Hassan Isilow
JOHANNESBURG
South Africa's National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) on Tuesday lodged a formal appeal against last month's five-year jail term handed down against Paralympian Oscar Pistorius for the murder of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp last year, saying the sentence was too lenient for the crime.
"Today, we announce that the NPA filed the application for leave to appeal both the conviction and sentence," the prosecution said in a Tuesday statement.
Last month, Judge Thokozile Masipa sentenced the 27-year-old athlete to five years in jail on one count of culpable homicide.
For violating the country's Firearms Control Act, she also slapped him with three years of imprisonment wholly suspended for five years.
"The honorable judge erred in overemphasizing the personal circumstances of the accused and the fact that the accused was suffering from post-traumatic stress, was anxious and 'seems remorseful,'" the statement read.
Prosecutors believe the five-year jail term is much too lenient, arguing that it would not have been imposed by a reasonable court.
"Not enough emphasis was placed on the horrendous manner in which the deceased died, coupled with the gruesome injuries she sustained when the accused shot and killed her," the statement asserted.
Pistorius was convicted of murdering his model girlfriend at his Pretoria home on Valentine's Day (February 14) of last year.
He fired four shots at the closed door of his bathroom, instantly killing Steenkamp, who he allegedly mistook for an intruder.
Pistorius started serving his jail sentence last month in the hospital section of Pretoria's Kgosi Mampuru II Prison.
According to Section 276 of South Africa's Criminal Procedure Act, Pistorius can apply for placement under house arrest after serving only one sixth of his sentence, which is equal to ten months.
Popularly known as the "Blade Runner," Pistorius was born without the fibulas in both of his legs. Before completing his first year, he had to have both his lower limbs amputated.
In 2004, Pistorius shot to fame at the age of 17 after winning a gold medal at the Athens Paralympics Games.
The sprinter has since gone on to win several other prestigious medals.
Pistorious made history in 2012 by becoming the first amputee runner to compete in the Olympics.
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