- Athlete retches on the stand as he recounts Valentine's Day shooting
- Told court 'everything changed' when he heard bathroom window open
- 'I just froze. I interpreted it as someone getting into the bathroom,' he said
- 'I just wanted to put myself between person who'd gained entry and Reeva'
- Had firearm extended in front of me, was overcome with fear, he told court
- 'I screamed to the person to get out of the house. I didn't have my legs on'
Wailing loudly in the witness box while teetering on his stumps, Oscar Pistorius spoke for the first time today of the moment he fired the fatal shots at Reeva Steenkamp through his toilet door.
In dramatic scenes, the amputee took off his prosthetic legs to give evidence then wept uncontrollably while describing how he gunned his girlfriend down fearing she was an intruder.
Speaking in front of the very door he fired through, he recounted hearing a window sliding open in his bathroom in the middle of the night on Valentine's Day last year.
Conditioned by years of living in crime-ridden South Africa, he said the noises convinced him someone was breaking into his luxury Pretoria home.
'That's the moment that everything changed,' he said, his voice tense with emotion.
He grabbed his gun from under the bed and told Miss Steenkamp to take cover thinking she was also in the bedroom, he told the court.
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Sobbed uncontrollably: Oscar Pistorius leaves court after the trial was adjourned early when he broke down in the witness box while describing the moment he shot Reeva Steenkamp dead
First verbal account: In dramatic evidence, Pistorius told how he grabbed his gun from under the bed and whispered to Miss Steenkamp to take cover after hearing what he said was the bathroom window sliding open
Grief: As Pistorius spoke of her daughter's final moments, Miss Steenkamp's mother June, who has for so long sat unmoved (left) in the public gallery, broke down in tears and covered her face with her hand (right)
HEARD FOR FIRST TIME: PISTORIUS ON THE MOMENT HE SHOT REEVA
'I noticed that the bathroom window was open. I was with my back against the wall.
'I wasn't sure if the intruders were in the toilet or around the corner at that point.
'Then I heard a noise from inside the toilet that I perceived to be someone coming out of the toilet.
'Before I knew it I had fired four shots at the door'
He said he then went to investigate
the noise, shouting in terror at the suspected burglar with his firearm
trained in front of him.
'I
got to the entrance of the bathroom at the end of the passage where I
stopped screaming', he told the court.
'At this point I was certain that the intruders were in the bathroom.
'I had my pistol in my right hand and peered into the bathroom.
'I didn't have much mobility on the tiles. I had my pistol raised to the corner of the entrance of the bathroom.
'I noticed that the bathroom window was open. I was with my back against the wall.
'I wasn't sure if the intruders were in the toilet or around the corner at that point.
'Then
I heard a noise from inside the toilet that I perceived to be someone
coming out of the toilet.
'Before I knew it I had fired four shots at the door.
'My ears were still ringing. I couldn't hear anything, so I kept shouting for Reeva to phone the police.
'I was still scared to retreat because I wasn't sure if there was somebody on the ladder or someone in the toilet.
He said he then went back to the bedroom and realised Miss Steenkamp wasn't there.
'I didn't want to believe it could be Reeva inside the toilet. I didn't know what to do. I kicked the door. I was crying out, I was screaming. I have never screamed like that.'
The Paralympian's sister, Aimee Pistorius (second right), cries as she hears her brother's account of the night he shot his model girlfriend
Emotional: The runner's aunt Lois and uncle Arnold wipe away tears as they listen to his evidence
Concern: Aimee, sister of Oscar Pistorius, attends his murder trial
ON THE MOMENT IT 'DAWNED ON HIM IT COULD BE REEVA IN THE TOILET'
'I retreated to the corner of the bed while talking to Reeva. She didn't respond. I lifted myself onto the bed.
'I felt if Reeva was there. I couldn't feel anything. I thought she had gone down on the floor.
'I kept my firearm pointing towards the passage.
'It dawned on me that it could be Reeva in the toilet. I jumped off the bed and tried to see if she was hiding behind the curtain.
'I didn't want to believe that it could be Reeva in the toilet.'
When she did not respond Pistorius said he realised he may have made a terrible mistake and rushed back to the bathroom to break down the ldoor.
After hitting the door, he saw the key inside, unlocked the door and 'flung it open'.
There, he found her fatally injured.
'I
said "Oh, Reeva". I sat over her and cried,' the athlete testified
sobbing loudly and putting his head in his hands and before letting out
the barely inaudible cry: 'She wasn't breathing'.
After a brief adjournment, his lawyer Barry Roux came back to say his client was in no state to continue.
The case was adjourned until tomorrow.
Earlier, the
Paralympian retched on the witness stand as he described the moments
leading up to the shooting.
Pistorius recalled how he heard a window sliding open in his bathroom in the middle of the night, convincing him an intruder was breaking in and that he needed to arm himself.
'That's the moment that everything changed,' he said, his voice tense with emotion.
'I thought that there was a burglar that was gaining entry to my home.'
On trial: Oscar Pistorius makes his way to court for the start of his second day in the witness box
Evidence: The athlete described how he had been planning to set up home with Miss Steenkamp
As he spoke, Miss Steenkamp's mother June, who has for so long sat unmoved in the public gallery during his testimony, broke down in tears and covered her face with her hand.
When post-mortem pictures of Miss Steenkamp's bloodstained body briefly flashed up on the courtroom television monitors, the 27-year-old athlete doubled over in the witness stand, retching into his cupped hands.
Pistorius said he woke in the middle of the night and noticed the fans were still running in his bedroom and that the door was open.
He told the court: 'Reeva rolled over to me and asked: "Can't you sleep Baba?"
'I stood up and got to the fans. I took the small fan and placed it inside the room.
'I placed the bigger fan in the bedroom. They were both still running. I closed and locked the sliding doors and drew the curtains.
'I came into the room. The only bit of light was an LED light on the amplifier where the TV cabinet is.
'I could see Reeva's jeans on the floor. I picked them up to place them over the LED light.
'It was at this point that I heard a window sliding open in the bathroom. I heard the window hit the frame.
'I
thought that a burglar had got into the house. I think I initially just
froze.
'I interpreted it as someone getting into the bathroom.
'That's the moment that everything changed.
'The first thing that ran through my mind was to protect Reeva and I and to get my gun.
He said he 'rushed as quick as I could' with his hand out in front of me, at times touching the floor before grabbing his firearm from underneath the bed.
Denial: Pistorius's ex-girlfriend Samantha Taylor sent this tweet seemingly in response to claims by the Paralympian in court that she may have set up a fake social media account to allegedly send hate messages to Miss Steenkamp
'NOISE THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING'
'I heard a window sliding open in the bathroom.
'I heard the window hit the frame.
'I thought that a burglar had got into the house. I think I initially just froze.
'I interpreted it as someone getting into the bathroom.
'That's the moment that everything changed.
'The first thing that ran through my mind was to protect Reeva and I and to get my gun'
'At that point I just wanted to put myself between the person who had gained access to my house and Reeva.
'I slowed down and had my firearm extended in front of me.
'I whispered to Reeva to get down and phone the police.
'As I entered where the (bathroom) passage is, I was overcome with fear. I screamed and shouted to the person to get out of the house. I didn't have my legs on.
'Just before I got to the passage I heard a door slam. It could have only been the toilet door.
'It confirmed that there was a person or people inside the bathroom.'
Pistorius then slumped forward and appeared to be sick as an autopsy picture of Miss Steenkamp was accidentally shown to the court.
Pretty: The court was shown this picture which the 29-year-old model sent Pistorius in one message showing her hair and make-up done before an event. He told her she looked 'amazeballs'
Affection: Miss Steenkamp also sent Pistorius this picture which he told the court was probably related to him buying a new home
Heated exchange: A WhatsApp message from Miss Steenkamp to Pistorius is shown on monitors in the courtroom as he reads out the contents to the court
Earlier, Pistorius fought back tears in the witness box while reading a string of heated phone messages Reeva Steenkamp sent him less than three weeks before he killed her.
Pistorius
said the couple sometimes had troubles in their relationship but they
sorted them out, were in love and were planning a life together.
Prosecutors
say he was often jealous and killed Miss Steenkamp after a loud
argument in the pre-dawn hours of Valentine's Day last year.
Sitting before a packed courtroom wearing a dark grey suit, the Paralympian described how their relationship developed, and with faltering voice, how the couple began to think of the future.
He said he was 'besotted' with the 29-year-old model and believed he was 'more into her' than she was with him.
Emotional: Oscar Pistorius weeps in the dock during graphic testimony about Reeva Steenkamp's injuries as the defence team opens its case in a bid to prove his innocence
Strain: The amputee buries his head in his hands as the court hears evidence of Miss Steenkamp's injuries
Pistorius, who has not consented to being shown during his evidence, was also asked to read a number of WhatsApp messages detailing rows between the pair in the weeks before her death.
In one, Miss Steenkamp wrote: 'We are
living in a double standard relationship where you can be mad about how I
deal with stuff when you are very quick to act cold and offish when
you're unhappy.
'Every
five seconds I hear how you dated another chick. You really have dated a
lot of people yet you get upset if I mention ONE funny story with a
long term boyfriend.
'I do everything to make you happy and to not say anything to rock the boat with u.'
She went on to say she was 'scared' of Pistorius on some occasions and told how he would 'snap' at her.
She
added: 'You make me happy 90 per cent of the time and I think we are
amazing together but I am not some other b**** you may know trying to
kill your vibe.
'I am the girl who let go with u even when I was scared out of my mind to.'
Pistorius, 27, said the couple had a disagreement at a social function that day and he was 'maybe just being sensitive, insecure or jealous.'
Too much to bear: Pistorius reacts as he listens to evidence by a pathologist in court
'I wake up every morning and you're the first people I think of': A trembling Pistorius apologised to Mrs Steenkamp (right) and her family for killing Miss Steenkamp at the start of his evidence
He said he apologised to Miss Steenkamp and sent her a message saying: 'I want to talk to you. I want to sort this out. ... I'm sorry for the things that I say without thinking.'
'My lady, I think it was a bad day in our relationship,' he added, addressing the judge who will ultimately deliver a verdict in the trial that began last month.
The athlete described how he met the model at a track day car event, adding: 'The first six days we knew each other we called each other everyday,' he said.
'We both had things that kept us back. We both came out of difficult relationships before,' he said.
'I was very keen on Reeva. I think if anything I was more into her, than she was at times with me.'
Pistorius went on to talk about his relationship with ex-girlfriend Samantha Taylor who gave evidence against him earlier in the trial.
The athlete denied that he had been
seeing Miss Steenkamp while going out with Miss Taylor after the latter
accused him of cheating on her with the model when she testified.
He told the court that 'she admitted sleeping with someone else when I was at (London) Olympics'.
Pistorius also claimed that Miss Steenkamp had received hate messages from fake social media accounts after they started dating
Tough testimony: Pistorius (back right) covers his eyes as prosecutor Gerrie Nel (front )cross-examines pathologist Jan Botha about a wound on Reeva Steenkamp's back, which is shown on monitors in court
One of these, Miss Steenkamp believed, may have been set up by Miss Taylor out of jealousy, Pistorius told the court.
As he was giving evidence, Miss Taylor took to Twitter to deny the claims.
'Last lies you get to tell... you better make it worth your while,' she wrote.
The tweet was deleted shortly afterwards.
Yesterday, Pistorius wept in court as he apologised to Miss Steenkamp's family, telling them: ‘I was trying to protect her.’
In a voice cracking with emotion, the athlete locked eyes with her mother June and told her from the witness stand: ‘I promise that when she went to bed that night, she felt loved.’
The disabled Olympian appeared in the dock for the first time, facing some of Miss Steenkamp’s family and friends.
Pretoria High Court heard how Pistorius wanted to begin his testimony by addressing them about the killing on Valentine’s Day last year.
‘There hasn’t been a moment since this tragedy happened that I haven’t thought about your family,’ he said.
‘I wake up in the morning and you’re the first people I think of, the first people I pray for,’ he told them from the witness box.
‘I can’t imagine the pain and the sorrow and the emptiness that I’ve caused you and your family.’
Between sobs and gasps for air, a white handkerchief clutched between his hands, Pistorius described how he had been traumatised after shooting Miss Steenkamp dead through a locked toilet door, claiming he thought she was an intruder.
Graphic: Pistorius covers his ears as the court hears details of Miss Steenkamp's bullet wound to the hip, shown above on monitors in the court room
Fatal shooting: The court is shown a close-up image of the bullet wound to Miss Steenkamp's hip
The
27-year-old double amputee, who was born without leg bones beneath the
knees, listed the cocktail of prescription drugs he was now taking to
deal with panic attacks, insomnia and nightmares. ‘I’m scared to sleep,’
he said through trembling lips.
‘I have terrible nightmares about the things that happened that night. I smell the blood and wake up terrified.’
On one occasion, he said, the night terrors seemed so real that he climbed into a cupboard in panic. A security guard is employed to watch his door, the hushed court heard.
‘I’m just in a complete state of terror,’ Pistorius added. ‘I fall asleep and wake up like that.’
For much of his 90-minute testimony, Pistorius wept or was close to tears as he described the challenges of his disability, his parents’ divorce, his mother’s sudden death and his heightened fear of crime.
Highly charged: Pistorius's sister Aimee (centre) aunt Lois (right) weep as they listen to his testimony
Difficult: The amputee's brother Carl rubs his eyes during highly emotional evidence from the Paralympian
But Mrs Steenkamp remained stony-faced as she listened to Pistorius, led by his counsel Barry Roux, portray himself as a devout Christian, a disciplined athlete and charity worker who loved his family and dogs.
The athlete’s mother, Sheila, who died when he was 15, had slept with a gun under her pillow, the court heard.
During evidence presented by the prosecution over the last three weeks, a picture has emerged of Pistorius as a quick-tempered gun-obsessive who was controlling and moody during his short relationship with Miss Steenkamp.
Perched on the gold-coloured cushion he has brought to court every day, the athlete described how he had been planning to set up home with Miss Steenkamp, a law graduate turned model.
Pistorius shot Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model, through the closed door of a toilet cubicle in his home in the night, later saying he mistook her for an intruder
‘I was bowled over by how much I felt for her,’ he told the court in a tremulous voice.
His testimony was cut short when Mr Roux asked for an early adjournment for his ‘emotionally exhausted’ client.
Earlier, Pistorius had retched as graphic pictures of Miss Steenkamp’s appalling gunshot wounds were flashed onto the court screens.
Forensic pathologist Professor Jan Botha, employed by the defence, had supported the state’s case that Miss Steenkamp was hit in the hip by the first shot fired from Pistorius’ revolver.
However, he suggested that the 29-year-old may not have had time to cry out during the volley of four bullets.
Pistorius, known as the ‘Blade Runner’ for his distinctive running prostheses, denies premeditated murder and two firearm charges. His evidence continues.
SHOCKING TESTIMONY, VOMITING IN THE DOCK AND THE GRISLY TRAIL OF BLOOD THROUGH PISTORIUS'S HOUSE: A TIMELINE OF THE TRIAL SO FAR
March 3: The trial begins with testimony from neighbour Michell Burger who claims she heard 'blood-curdling screams' before gunshots were fired at the time Oscar Pistorius killed Reeva Steenkamp.
His
lawyer Barry Roux says he intends to call a witness to testify that
Pistorius screams sounded like a woman in a bid to discredit the claims.
March 4: Pistorius breaks down in court as Mr Roux argues that Miss Steenkamp was so badly brain damaged by the gunshot to her head she couldn't possibly have screamed for help.
Physically sick: Oscar Pistorius vomits into a bucket as the pathologist who carried out the post-mortem on Reeva Steenkamp gave a graphic account of her injuries
March 5: Mr Roux seeks to undermine the testimony of a couple who say they heard a woman's screams and gunfire on the night the athlete shot his girlfriend.
Barry Roux said similarities in the accounts given by husband and wife Michell Burger and Charl Johnson indicated they had aligned their versions at the expense of the truth.
March 6:
Pistorius weeps in the dock as a neighbour describes the harrowing
moment he tried to resuscitate his girlfriend after she was shot.
Radiologist Johan Stipp dashed to the Paralympian's home after hearing gunshots to find Pistorius kneeling next to Reeva Steenkamp and 'praying to God' that she would survive, the trial heard.
March 8:
A former girlfriend who claims Pistorius dumped her for Miss Steenkamp
testifies that he once shot at a traffic light because he was furious
that a police officer had touched his gun.
March 10: Pistorius vomits in court when a pathologist describes how he shot Miss Steenkamp with so-called cop-killer Black Talon bullets which are designed to 'expand and mushroom' to inflict maximum damage.
Aftermath of the killing: This picture of Oscar Pistorius, bare-chested and covered in blood from the waist down, was taken by police shortly after the Paralympian shot Reeva Steenkamp at his home
Shocking: Blood can be seen down the athlete's left arm and on his shorts apparently from when he carried his dead girlfriend down the stairs after shooting her in the bathroom
March 11: A friend tells the judge that the Paralympian has a 'big love' of weapons and recalls the time the athlete laughed after allegedly firing his gun out of the sunroof of a car.
March 12: A forensic analyst stages a dramatic courtroom reconstruction of the moment Pistorius broke down the toilet door with a cricket bat after shooting Miss Steenkamp.
Police colonel Johannes Vermeulen argued that Pistorius was on his stumps at the time, contradicting the Paralympian's assertion that he was wearing his prosthetic legs.
March 13:
Horrific pictures following the trail of blood through Pistorius's
house are shown at the trial - including one of his girlfriend's corpse
that made the athlete throw up in the dock.
The image of Miss Steenkamp's blood-covered body was accidentally shown while the prosecution was showing other images including the cocked 9mm pistol used to kill the model.
March 14: Dramatic pictures are shown to the court of a bare-chested Pistorius with blood all over his shorts and prosthetic legs shortly after killing his model girlfriend.
March 17:
A gun licenser testifies that Pistorius was in the process of buying
seven guns - three shotguns, two revolvers, semi-automatic assault rifle
and another self-loading rifle - at the time he killed his girlfriend.
The order, which came to $5,000 (£3,000), was cancelled a month after the shooting.
Earlier,
the court heard the double-amputee had a 'great love and enthusiasm'
for guns and once went into full 'combat mode' after hearing a possible intruder at his home.
The noise turned out to be a washing machine.
Pistorius had also passed self-defence tests that stated you shouldn't fire unless you knew what you are shooting at and what lay behind the target, the trial heard.
Key evidence: Forensic analyst Colonel Johannes Vermeulen stands in front of the toilet door through which Oscar Pistorius shot Reeva Steenkamp while holding the cricket bat the athlete then used to break it down
March 19: The trial is told that Pistorius looked at porn and car websites the night before he killed Miss Steenkamp.
He breaks down in the dock as a ballistics expert tells Pretoria's High Court that Miss Steenkamp was struck in the hip by the first bullet, then fell back on to a magazine holder by the toilet.
She was then hit by another two bullets which struck her in the right arm and her skull as she crossed her arms over her head to protect herself.
March 20: It is revealed by the runner's lawyer that he has been forced to sell the luxury villa where he shot Miss Steenkamp to raise money to pay for his legal bills.
March 24: The court hears how the 29-year-old model admitted to being scared of the South African track star in text messages sent less than three weeks before her death.
One of them read: 'I'm scared of you sometimes and how you snap at me'. A later text said: 'I can’t be attacked by outsider for dating u and be attacked by you the person I deserve protection from.'
March 25: A selfie of Miss Steenkamp blowing a kiss which she sent to Pistorius weeks before he killed her is shown to the court.
March 28: Trial is adjourned until April 7 after one of the judge's two assessors is taken ill in hospital.
April 7: Pistorius takes the witness stand. He starts his testimony with a tearful apology to Miss Steenkamp's family, saying: 'I can’t imagine the pain and the sorrow and the emptiness that I’ve caused you and your family. I was simply trying to protect Reeva.'
He tells the court the shooting has left him plagued by nightmares which he wakes up from 'smelling blood' and that he is taking anti-depressant medication to help with panic attacks.
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