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| At Pistorius Trial, Witness Re-Enacts Screams | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The South African courtroom where Oscar Pistorius, the double amputee track star, is facing murder charges echoed to the haunting sounds of screaming on Tuesday as a defense witness re-enacted what she said were loud wails made by a man with a high-pitched voice at the athlete’s home on the night his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, was shot to death. | The South African courtroom where Oscar Pistorius, the double amputee track star, is facing murder charges echoed to the haunting sounds of screaming on Tuesday as a defense witness re-enacted what she said were loud wails made by a man with a high-pitched voice at the athlete’s home on the night his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, was shot to death. |
| The testimony was designed to support a defense assertion that screams heard at Mr. Pistorius’s home in the early hours of Feb. 14, 2013, were those of a man in agony. Prosecution witnesses said earlier in the trial that they had heard a woman screaming as shots were fired. | The testimony was designed to support a defense assertion that screams heard at Mr. Pistorius’s home in the early hours of Feb. 14, 2013, were those of a man in agony. Prosecution witnesses said earlier in the trial that they had heard a woman screaming as shots were fired. |
| Mr. Pistorius, 27, has said that he shot and killed Ms. Steenkamp, 29, by mistake, thinking she was an intruder and firing four rounds from a handgun through a locked bathroom door at his home in the capital, Pretoria. | Mr. Pistorius, 27, has said that he shot and killed Ms. Steenkamp, 29, by mistake, thinking she was an intruder and firing four rounds from a handgun through a locked bathroom door at his home in the capital, Pretoria. |
| By his account, he screamed loudly when he realized what had happened. The prosecution says he committed premeditated murder — an offense that carries a minimum 25-year jail term — by shooting Ms. Steenkamp, a model and law school graduate, after the couple argued. | By his account, he screamed loudly when he realized what had happened. The prosecution says he committed premeditated murder — an offense that carries a minimum 25-year jail term — by shooting Ms. Steenkamp, a model and law school graduate, after the couple argued. |
| Two neighbors testified on Tuesday that the screams that they had heard were made by a man. | Two neighbors testified on Tuesday that the screams that they had heard were made by a man. |
| Mike Nhlengethwa, who lived next door to Mr. Pistorius, said he had heard “very loud” cries from a “very high-pitched voice.” | Mike Nhlengethwa, who lived next door to Mr. Pistorius, said he had heard “very loud” cries from a “very high-pitched voice.” |
| “The way he was crying — the cry we heard was a really desperate one,” he said. “It was very loud, like he was in danger.” | “The way he was crying — the cry we heard was a really desperate one,” he said. “It was very loud, like he was in danger.” |
| The man was screaming at one point, “no please, please, please, no,” Mr. Nhlengethwa said. | The man was screaming at one point, “no please, please, please, no,” Mr. Nhlengethwa said. |
| Another neighbor, Rika Motshuane, said she “only heard a man crying, very loud.” | Another neighbor, Rika Motshuane, said she “only heard a man crying, very loud.” |
| “If I could have heard a female also screaming, I think I would have reflected it” in her initial statement to the police, she said, adding that she had not heard gunshots. | “If I could have heard a female also screaming, I think I would have reflected it” in her initial statement to the police, she said, adding that she had not heard gunshots. |
| “The crying was very loud and very close,” she said. “I even thought it could be inside the house.” | “The crying was very loud and very close,” she said. “I even thought it could be inside the house.” |
| Invited to imitate the sounds she had heard, Ms. Motshuane took a sip of water and screamed in a way that reporters in the courtroom described on Twitter as “a howl of pain,” “disturbing” and “dramatic.” | Invited to imitate the sounds she had heard, Ms. Motshuane took a sip of water and screamed in a way that reporters in the courtroom described on Twitter as “a howl of pain,” “disturbing” and “dramatic.” |
| The trial is being broadcast live but, under rules devised before hearings began in early March, witnesses may request that their image not be shown. Both Mr. Nhlengethwa and Ms. Motshuane made that request on Tuesday. The rest of the courtroom was shown on television, and the testimony of both witnesses was clearly audible. | The trial is being broadcast live but, under rules devised before hearings began in early March, witnesses may request that their image not be shown. Both Mr. Nhlengethwa and Ms. Motshuane made that request on Tuesday. The rest of the courtroom was shown on television, and the testimony of both witnesses was clearly audible. |
| For the second successive day, the trial adjourned early because defense witnesses were not present. Mr. Pistorius’s lawyer, Barry Roux, said the case was proceeding more quickly than he had planned because the prosecutor, Gerrie Nel, was asking fewer questions than he had expected. The hearings are set to resume on Thursday, after a public holiday Wednesday for national elections. Mr. Roux said that the defense might wind up its case by next Tuesday, making way for final arguments by both sides followed by deliberations by Judge Thokozile Matilda Masipa, who will pronounce the verdict. There are no jury trials in South Africa. | For the second successive day, the trial adjourned early because defense witnesses were not present. Mr. Pistorius’s lawyer, Barry Roux, said the case was proceeding more quickly than he had planned because the prosecutor, Gerrie Nel, was asking fewer questions than he had expected. The hearings are set to resume on Thursday, after a public holiday Wednesday for national elections. Mr. Roux said that the defense might wind up its case by next Tuesday, making way for final arguments by both sides followed by deliberations by Judge Thokozile Matilda Masipa, who will pronounce the verdict. There are no jury trials in South Africa. |