Oscar Pistorius Trial: ‘Heartbroken’ Blade Runner ‘Cried 80 Percent Of The Time’ In Post-Shooting Consulting Session, Social Worker Testifies
May 8 2014, Published 10:57 a.m. ET
A social worker who spoke with Oscar Pistorius the day after he fatally shot Reeva Steenkamp said that the 27-year-old runner was “a heartbroken man” in the wake of the shooting.
"He cried 80 percent of the time; he talked to me about what they planned for the future, his future with her,” social worker Yvette van Schalkwyk testified at South Africa's Pretoria court Thursday, adding that she was compelled to take the stand after reports surfaced that double-amputee runner's courtroom outbursts were the result of acting lessons, as opposed to genuine emotion.
The social worker said that the paralympian’s legal team contacted her just two days prior in seeking her expertise on the stand.
The testimony from van Schalkwyk, naturally, came under fire from bulldog prosecutor Gerrie Nel, who claimed her findings were irrelevant to the case, as it’s a logical assumption Pistorius would have been shaken-up and traumatized in the wake of the shooting.
Nel said that the Olympian’s lack of apologetic sentiments regarding Steenkamp’s death further illustrate another character flaw, as "It's all about him."
Also testifying Thursday was an anesthetist, Prof. Aina Christina Lundgren, in regards to a claim by the athlete that he and the model-reality star Steenkamp had dinner eight hours before the shooting.
According to Lundgren, Steenkamp still had food in her stomach at the time of the shooting -- which puts the Pistorius version of the story in conflict — as according to a separate expert’s testimony, it takes about six hours for the stomach to be free of food.
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As we previously reported, should Pistorius be convicted of premeditated murder, he could be sentenced up to life with a 25-year minimum sentence. If convicted of murder, he could face up to 15 years in custody.
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