Oscar Pistorius Gets 5 Years In Jail For Killing His Girlfriend

The South African Paralympic runner Oscar Pistorius was sentenced to five years in prison for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

In September the athlete was found guilty of culpable homicide, but was acquitted of murder after shooting Steenkamp four times through a toilet cubicle door at his home on Saint Valentine's Day in 2013.

Judge Thokozile Matilda Masipa announced her ruling after seven months of often-delayed hearings and said a non-custodial sentence would send the 'wrong message to the community'.

The prosecution had sought a 10-year jail term, while the defence had requested that he be placed under house arrest for three years and perform community service.

According to legal observers, Pistorius could spend only ten months in jail and, provided he poses no trouble to the prison authorities, could spend the remainder of his sentence under correctional supervision at home.

The lawyers of Pistorius told he was not going to appeal the sentence.

He is expected to be sent to a high-security wing at the Pretoria Central Prison, where one criminal kingpin has already threatened to 'take him out', according to The Daily Mail.

The parents of Reeva Steenkamp told the media it was glad the trial was over, though it "would not magic Reeva back." A lawyer for the family said the sentence was "welcome".