Olympian murderer Oscar Pistorius, up for parole, may meet with slain girlfriend’s parents

South African Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius, who is halfway done serving a 13½-year condemnation for the 2013 execution of his girlfriend, is up for parole and could conscionable with the victim’s parents arsenic portion of the process.

June and Barry Steenkamp, the parents of Reeva Steenkamp, were “shocked and surprised” erstwhile they were informed of Pistorius’s parole eligibility past month, said Tania Koen, a lawyer for the victim’s family. Pistorius had been up for imaginable aboriginal merchandise since April, she wrote successful an email.

Koen declined to remark connected what the Steenkamps mightiness accidental to Pistorius if they meet. June had forgiven Pistorius “because of her faith,” she said and Barry “finds it hard but is acceptable to commencement a dialogue.”

Reeva Steenkamp, a exemplary and paralegal, was murdered by Pistorius, 1 of South Africa’s astir celebrated athletes, a twelvemonth aft helium became the archetypal amputee runner to vie successful the Olympics astatine the 2012 London Games. Pistorius, who was nicknamed the “Blade Runner” and competed with blade-shaped prosthetics aft becoming a treble amputee arsenic a child, has besides won six Paralympic golden medals.

The mates had dated for respective months earlier Pistorius fatally changeable Steenkamp done a locked bath doorway successful his flat successful Pretoria. He claimed successful tribunal that helium had mistaken his girlfriend, past 29, for a burglar.

Pistorius, who was convicted of manslaughter earlier being recovered blameworthy of murder, was yet fixed the decade-plus condemnation aft a apical South African tribunal recovered his erstwhile word of six years to beryllium “shockingly lenient.” Earlier reports had said the jock would lone beryllium eligible for parole successful March 2023, but that did not instrumentality into relationship clip helium had already served.

Speaking astatine a sentencing proceeding for Pistorius successful 2016, a visibly affectional Barry Steenkamp told the tribunal that portion the Steenkamps forgave Pistorius for sidesplitting their daughter, “forgiving … does not exonerate you from the transgression you committed.”

South African authorities signifier a argumentation of “restorative justice” and accidental that having victims conscionable with offenders tin assistance empower the erstwhile portion besides preventing recidivism. (Victims whitethorn diminution to beryllium portion of the process.)

The parole process volition besides necessitate reports from psychologists and societal workers connected the grade of Pistorius’s rehabilitation and remorse, said Koen, the lawyer for the Steenkamps.

“They judge [that seeking parole] is portion of our instrumentality [and] that an offender who has served a definite information of their condemnation is eligible to beryllium considered,” she wrote successful an email, adding that her clients were waiting to perceive from parole authorities connected a imaginable gathering date.

Pistorius’s lawyer did not respond to a petition for comment.