Sigh – here we go again.

Outrage was the general vibe following the six-year sentence handed down to Oscar Pistorius by Judge Thokozile Masipa, everyone weighing in on how the taking of a life could result in such a lenient sentence.

Well, with the latest, here’s EWN:

…the State will appeal the six-year prison sentence imposed on convicted murderer Oscar Pistorius…

Masipa said the mitigating factors in the case outweighed the aggravating factors and that factors existed to deviate from the prescribed sentence for murder.

The former athlete served one year in jail after the High Court in Pretoria found him guilty of culpable homicide, but the appeal court overturned that finding last year and convicted him of murder.

Pistorius maintains that he shot and killed Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day in 2013 in the mistaken belief that she was an intruder.

Prosecutor Gerrie Nel had argued that Pistorius should go to prison for no less than 15 years, while defence advocate Barry Roux suggested a non-custodial sentence.

The National Prosecuting Authority with this statement, according to TimesLive:

[They] said that the sentence of six years imprisonment handed down by Pretoria High Court Judge Thokozile Masipa was ‘shockingly too lenient and has accordingly resulted in an injustice and has the potential to bring the administration of justice into disrepute’.

There you have it.

Appeal time. More courtroom reporting. Maybe even a live feed.

Do the State really think they can do better than six years in jail? I guess only time will tell, but for now we can count on the public remaining suitably outraged at the existing sentence.

[sources:ewn&timeslive]