As the Oscar Pistorius murder trial continues, the athlete has put his house on the market to recoup the costs incurred from legal services. The Pretoria villa is the same house where his then-girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp was killed. Pistorius has not returned to the house since the tragic events of Valentine's Day, 2013, when he shot Steenkamp.
"It has become necessary to sell Mr. Pistorius' home in the Silver Woods Country Estate in Pretoria in order for him to raise the necessary funds to cover his increasing legal costs," said his lawyer, Brian Webber, in a statement. "This is due to the unexpected extension of the trial beyond the initial three-week period for which it was originally set down."
It was anticipated that the trial would end March 20, though the prosecution is still in the process of presenting their case, likely until next week. Pistorius' defense team will follow with their own arguments and witnesses in the coming weeks, with the trial now thought to extend through to April.
Another delay comes from an unexpected adjournment granted on Wednesday, the lead prosecutor Gerrie Nel asking to pick up the case on Monday. Ostensibly so Nel could prepare the remaining witnesses, legal professionals observing the case are speculating that the adjournment comes as the prosecution struggles to demonstrate concrete evidence for their case. Additionally, it's thought that new evidence could have emerged that would strongly impact the prosecution's arguments.""It could be... that their case has been fundamentally damaged and that he needs the long weekend to really re-evaluate the focus of the case, and see whether the initial lines of argument and their initial conception of the events is still sound, in the light of all the evidence that has come up subsequently," said Kelly Phelps, a senior law lecturer at the University of Cape Town.
One of the 18 witnesses to testify so far is ballistics expert Captain Christiaan Mangena, who stated that evidence pointed towards Steenkamp first being shot in the hip, causing her to fall backward over a magazine rack anchored next to the toilet. Three other bullets pierced her back, right arm, and skull. The bullets, upon penetrating human tissue, opens into six separate spikes to tear through organs and maximize damage.
Last valued at the time of his bail hearing last year, Pistorius' house is worth an estimated $456,000. The athlete typically made around $500,000 per year, though has not competed professionally since 2012. Pistorius has also been dropped by several sponsor companies, including Nike and Oakley.
