Neues » Pistorius should be sentenced

Ozone Park, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - America, ridden by Junior Alvarado, came like a freight train down the stretch to capture the New Years Day $100,000 Affectionately Stakes for fillies and mares at Aqueduct. Trained by Bill Mott for Bobby Flay, America was the 4-1 second choice behind 3-5 favorite Belle Gallantey in the eight-horse field with six betting interests. The entry of Penwith and Divided Attention was the 4-1 co-second pick for the 1 1/16-mile stakes. America trailed through the early going as Penwith set the pace with Belle Gallantey, winner of the Delaware Handicap and Beldame Invitational, pressing the leader up the backstretch. Coming off the final turn, Penwith was on the inside with Belle Gallantey, Shayjolie and Simply Spectacular making up the first group of runners. America was putting in her rally down the middle of the track. She broke and got a little bit squeezed at the break, I just let her relax and get in a nice rhythm, said Alvarado. As soon as we turned for home I didnt know if we would get there, but I knew it was going to be close because she was responding well for me. America was relentless down the stretch in her rally from last. The filly continued to draw closer to Penwith even as the finish loomed ahead. America caught Penwith at the wire to post a nose victory. Shes a filly where previously at the half-mile pole you had to start riding her hard because she didnt have a strong kick and would start to drop back, but today as soon as I started to pick it up with her she was ready to go - picking it up real fast, said the jockey. Divided Attention was third followed by Shayjolie, Belle Gallantey, Simply Spectacular, Agawa and Mylitta. The time for the Affectionately was 1:44.68 on a fast track. America, sired by 1992 Horse of the Year A. P. Indy, posted her third straight win with the opening race of her 4-year-old season. The filly has won four of 13 career starts and the $60,000 boosts her lifetime earnings to $306,940. As a 3-year-old, America raced in nothing but stakes but with little success. She finished third in the Gulfstream Park Oaks and Mother Goose, and finally found the winners circle in her last two starts of the year in a pair of allowances. America returned $10.40, $3.90 and $3.30. Penwith paid $4.60 and $4.60, and Divided Attention paid $4.60 and $4.60. Greedy Williams Womens Jersey . J.J. Hardy drove in a run for the Orioles, who bounced back from an 8-4 loss in the series opener on Friday. Fresh off the 15-day disabled list, Derrek Lee went 2-for-4 with two runs scored. Jake Arrieta (7-3) gave up three runs on five hits over six innings to pick up the win. Austin Seibert Jersey . The cause of his death is as of yet undetermined, but police said foul play is not suspected. http://www.brownsrookiestore.com/Browns-...Seibert-Jersey/. Snedekers best result so far this year is a tie for eighth place at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March. He sits 113th in FedEx Cup standings and has dropped to 31st in world rankings — not the results expected from a player ranked fourth in the world only two years ago. Ozzie Newsome Browns Jersey . Its the second of three meetings between these teams this season. Vancouver was a 2-1 winner on home ice December 22nd. Bernie Kosar Womens Jersey .twitter.com/TeZD3KOvlA — Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) September 24, 2014 Sorry for the delay, we just got back from lunch at Papa Vons #NBAFastFood pic.On Tuesday, Oscar Pistorius will finally learn his fate when Judge Masipa sentences the former Olympian for the death of Reeve Steenkamp. Pistorius was found guilty of culpable homicide, which means Judge Masipa concluded he acted negligently when he killed Steenkamp. So by passing on the more severe charge of murder, Judge Masipa was saying she believed the shooting was an accident. Prison Time: Culpable Homicide Under South African law, the legislation does not provide for specific prison time for culpable homicide. Rather, the sentencing is discretionary (varies from fines to prison time), although its not unusual to see prison time in South Africa of 5-10 years for this type of crime. Still, given its discretionary nature, it’s possible that Pistorius will not face any prison time. Last week, the sides were back in Court for the sentencing hearing. During the hearing, both sides called witnesses with a view to persuading Judge Masipa of an appropriate punishment for Pistorius. Remember, since there is no jury system in South Africa, Judge Masipa will decide the punishment. Correctional Supervision v. Prison Pistorius’ lawyer, Barry Roux, is calling for three years of correctional supervision. Correctional supervision is a community-based sentence which is served by the offender in the community under the control and supervision of correctional officials, subject to conditions which have been set by the court or the Commissioner of Correctional Services, in order to protect the community and to prevent relapse into crime. Under correctional supervision, Pistorius could serve initial time in prison and then be released to serve the balance of his sentence under house arrest. Alternatively, he could be released immediately without spending any time in prison and serve his sentence under house arrest. Gerrie Nel, lead counsel for the prosecution, is demanding 10 years in prison and has said that house arrest would be “shockingly inappropriate” given the circumstances. Sentencing Hearing: In Support of Pistorius During the sentencing hearing, Roux was attempting to convince Judge Masipa that Pistorius was a man of good character who was genuinely remorseful and contrite for killing Steenkamp. As well, Roux sought to establish that South African prisons were incapable of accommodating someone with a disability and that Pistorius was not a threat to the community at large. The evidence presented by Roux was designed to seek the mercy of the Court and leniency during sentencing. To that end, Roux called a number of witnesses that painted a positive, honorable picture of Pistorius, while describing prisons in very unfavourable terms. First up was Dr. Lore Hartzenberg, a psychologist who treated Pistorius in 2013 after the killing. She testified that Pistorius was a “broken man” who has lost his friends and career, as well as his professional and moral reputation. Here are some of the statements she made in Court: - Some therapy sessions were just Pistorius crying, weeping and me holding him - He often showed signs of grief or remorse; sessions often had to be re-scheduled because he was so grief-strricken - When recounting sensory perceptions of the event, he would retch, sweat, pace up and down - signs of trauma.dddddddddddd - He hasnt reached a stage of healing and acceptance - Pistorius was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He will carry flashbacks with him forever. - His remorse and pain is genuine. - We are left with a broken man who has lost everything. The next witness called by Pistorius’ team was Joel Maringa, a social worker for the Department of Correctional Services. In place of prison, Maringa recommended that Pistorius serve three years of house arrest together with community service, including 16 hours of domestic cleaning. We are basically not saying that he should be destroyed because he will still be coming back into the community, Maringa told the court. Pistorius: An Inspirational Figure Roux then called Petrus van Zyl, Pistorius’s business manager. He described Pistorius as an inspirational figure who has done a lot of charity and volunteer work. Van Zyn also spoke of Pistorius’ work with children, the positive reaction that the children and charities have to the Olympian and the fact that he sometimes let kids beat him in races. Finally, Roux called probation officer Annette Vergeer. She thought it was “highly unlikely” Pistorius would reoffend. She also testified that the prison facilities could not accommodate a person with a disability. She also believed that Pistorius would be a target in prison as a result of his celebrity and was at risk of gang rape, AIDS, tuberculosis, beatings and drug use. Prison would break him as a person, she told the court. She also recommended three years of house arrest. On cross examination, she admitted that her conclusions regarding prison conditions were based on a speech made in 2005 by a government official. For that reason, during closing arguments Nel described Vergeer’s testimony as “sketchy”, “outdated” and “negatively biased”. Prosecution Calls Its Witnesses The prosecution called Kim Martin, Steenkamp’s cousin. The goal of her testimony was to show how Steenkamp’s death devastated her family and friends. Nel also called Zach Modise, acting head of South Africas Correctional Services. He painted a more positive picture of South African prisons and testified that they could achieve the goal of correction, reform and rehabilitation. These are key guiding sentencing principles for Judge Masipa. I carved out a lot of the testimony from the sentencing hearing and played it on my radio show Offside together with my commentary. Click here to listen. The Decision It’s difficult to predict Judge Masipa’s sentence because she made a grave error of law in not finding Pistorius guilty of murder. However, if precedent is to guide us, Pistorius should be sentenced to 5 to 10 years in prison – and closer to 7 years. If the sentence is considered light by the prosecution, expect to see an appeal. On the flip side, Pistorius will likely appeal any jail time. Going into tomorrow, the only certainty in Pretoria is uncertainty. Whatever the outcome, no one should be surprised and some will be disappointed. ' ' '