South Africa's Pistorius arrested after girlfriend shot dead

From news reports, it sounds like this is the area that he lived.

http://www.silverlakes.co.za/

I lived in South Africa for six months. In that time the place I lived at was broken into 3 times. One of those times, two guys broke into my roommate's room while he was sleeping. They both had knives. He somehow got out with only a small cut.

Also, the place I lived at had bars on all doors and windows, an alarm system, and security guards that drove by about every hour or so.

Crime is no joke in SA. More so than any American city guaranteed. Unemployment is over 50%. That trumps anything we've dealt with in the U.S. and that's the way it is consistently there, not just during a recession.

I don't know what happened with Oscar, but it wouldn't surprise if the story about him thinking his GF was an intruder was true. Everybody in the country has been broken into, or know someone close who has. It's just part of life there.

People get shot FOUR times by accident? :-0

orbitboy wrote:

People get shot FOUR times by accident? :-0

Put yourself in his shoes for a minute. Middle of night, you hear that someone has gotten in your house. You think it is an intruder. You can't see them well, you shoot at the movement. If you are frightened for you life, are you only going to fire once? Hell No, you shoot until you know the intruder is out.

Having lived in SA, I know that even the most protected homes get broken into. The criminals there are professional. They start when they are young and continue until they die. There are no jobs there, so that is how they get by. All you need to go over an electric fence on razor wire fence at one of these places is a thick blanket draped over. You just do it at the back of the property where there are no guards at the front gate. So even at the most secure places, people are afraid of break ins. They don't even trust their guards sometimes.

Also, the gated communities there, you have to check in at the gate to get in. They call the homeowner to make sure the visitor is welcome. If she got in with no clearance from Oscar, of course he's going to be scared when someone comes in without getting called first.

Again, maybe he did shoot her over some dispute, I don't know, I just know what life is like in South Africa.

Probably worth to mention that he lives in a place that in 2009 was awarded the safest place to live in SA...

A Duck wrote:

It's tragic, and those making lame jokes, are lame. This woman had a family and friends.

Not a great choice of wording there then

Stating the obvious wrote:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/02/14/us-safrica-pistorius-idUSBRE91D0AE20130214

Well, we all knew that Oscar was fully armed, but I don't think that he will have a leg to stand on in court with this defense.

The story so far is kind of fishy...

--Neighbors heard the gunshots at 4AM?

--Radio reported it was "accidental."

--Police dept said they did not make any announcement/determination that the shooting was accidental.

--Press reported she was "surprising" Oscar on Valentines day...

--Crime is indeed insanely high in SA, gated communities are common, own a gun, also common.

--Previous emerging reports of domestic "incidents" at Oscar's house.

--Previous reports of Oscar's violent behavior.

--Previous reports of Oscar showing off his guns and weapons and bragging about his guns and weapons to a reporter...and taking that reporter to a shooting range.

--Previous quotes in press about Oscar "not being who he seems" from a previous girlfriend.

Questions:

1. Who surprises their boyfriend at 4AM on Valentines day?

2. What secure housing complex with security and security gates manned 24/7...somehow allow a woman (and presumably) her car to get in without notifying the home owner?

(There could be a reasonable explanation, she could have had a security ID given to regular guests or something...it still seems odd though).

There are a lot of things yet to be explained about this one.

found some pics of his girlfriend. i would confuse her for an intruder too:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&sugexp=les%3B&gs_rn=3&gs_ri=psy-ab&qe=Y2FzdGVyIHNlbWVueWE&qesig=8b2dDOSjW9zjs85dLWvrvg&pkc=AFgZ2tkH96h0U0bR18uKbYV35Q7V9Q20fp6jHmfdkYo4Pw3e1Uw3hn3HjzhSnQzjxtiaJXj5m8CNLTfr15mPEcHwI5sbjgE0Aw&cp=14&gs_id=7&xhr=t&q=caster+semenya&safe=off&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.r_qf.&bvm=bv.42452523,d.b2U&biw=1189&bih=620&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=C_ocUdiUIYSE2QX8joHACA

Doclove wrote:

A Duck wrote:

It's tragic, and those making lame jokes, are lame. This woman had a family and friends.

Not a great choice of wording there then

Shows how low your mind is.

zero chance she was attempting to surprise him at 4am.

Damn.. Happy trails Oscar P.

I was never a fan. I was one of those people everyone called an a-hole for saying he shouldn't be allowed in the olympics. This aside, I never liked the guy because of how ridiculous his compensation was (>1 mill/yr) and his attitude combined with his gun hobby. Now I feel justified in my distaste and vindicated. I know he's innocent until proven guilty and blah blah but I have little doubt in my mind given what i've seen so far.

Yeah I'm calling bunk on the "mistaken for an intruder" story.

It's contradictory. For this explanation to work, one has to be both groggy and sleepy enough to mistake a loved one for a stranger, yet clear and of a present mind to grab a concealed weapon, set the hammer or pull back the slide, and take precise aim to, according to the reports I've read, wound the "assailant" in the arm and head.

That doesn't jive. He murdered her. Plain and simple.

Hey, Nike? RETRACT...RETRACT:

http://www.ibelieveinadv.com/commons/nike5.jpg

First off, this is a very tragic story. My heart goes out to the family/friends of the girlfriend who lost her life. With that said, you have to wonder about the scenario. After reading reports about Oscar's history of some domestic violence w/a previous girl friend and troubling encounters w/acquaintances in the past, you have to wonder or be suspicious. You would think if Oscar was so afraid of an intruder and had guns nearby--don't you think he had his house alarm on too and if so, he would have heard it go off? or did the girlfriend know the code and had a house key to get in? Hard to believe since they've only been dating for couple months. Seems like Oscar is not the type of guy who trust someone who he barely knows and give her access to his house--hence him having all the guns in his room. And I highly doubt that the girlfriend would surprise him @ 4am either. Just a thought.

Has anyone considered the possibility that she may have been a replicant?

A Duck wrote:

It's tragic, and those making lame jokes, are lame. This woman had a family and friends.

Who is making jokes?

If this woman had been armed, she could have shot back and Pistorius. Problem solved.

More guns are the always the solution to violence from guns. Duh.

ronner wrote:

Put yourself in his shoes for a minute...

Good one! I almost didn't notice.