Oscar pistorious being released on parole

Pray for OP? Are you serious?

I am interested to learn that he must attend an anger management course. Do we know if these have any lasting effects? Does anyone on GN have experience of working with these ? I wonder if something as hard wired as gender based violence is possible to " unlearn". Or am I wrong to be doubtful?

I’m surprised he didn’t have to undergo such a course, with satisfactory results, before he was considered for parole, given that anger was apparently at the root of the crime. I have no idea if this sort of thing works, especially with someone so arrogant as he seemed to be.

I'm surprised too GSM. The restrictions that have been placed on him to obtain his release aren't going to protect anyone from his uncontrollable rage are they.

To those so sure he’s not a threat to anyone else, unless he’s changed a whole lot he certainly may be in the future

“Oscar Pistorius fired a gun through the roof of a car in a fit of petulance after an argument with a police officer, his ex-girlfriend told a court on Friday”

“police confirmed that there had been prior calls about domestic incidents at Pistorius' house, including in 2009 when he spent a night in jail for allegedly slamming the door on a 19-year-old woman's leg during a party at his house after she refused to leave; an assault charge was eventually dropped”

“he jumped out of his car at the gateway of his Pretoria housing complex and put his gun to the window of a black BMW that appeared to have been following him”

Oscar was an adrenaline freak at a level I had never seen before. He had already suffered serious injuries when he crashed his speedboat into a pier. He had kept exotic pets, some of them dangerous. He drove us around in his high-performance sports car — not the kind you can get at a normal dealer but more like a race car — at speeds of up to 140 miles per hour.
Ummmm one angry adrenaline fuelled man let’s hope he’s had a wake up call and is free of drug while serving his time

I would like to think that in this country he wouldn’t have been granted parole whilst still such a potential danger.

Aveline

SA is a scary place to live. People live in a heightened state of fear even in their own homes. Especially in their own homes. My SiL is from SA and DD was shocked when she visited at the bars on the windows and doors effectively turning their bedroom into a cell. Family and friends have told us horror stories. Sadly,criminals have little to lose and can be desperately dangerous.
However, one aspect of the Pistorious case that was never considered was his use of steroids. 'Roid rage' is well known to lead to rapid mood change and activity. Pistorious was known to be taking them. The environment he was in, his level of disability plus these nasty substances easily account for his precipitate behaviour on that awful night.
Poor boy. Let him out. His life as he knew it has gone.

Does living in S Africa absolve him from the consequences of his violent behaviour, use of steroids, leading to murder.

He's not a poor boy, it is well documented that he is a violent and abusive man who was found guilty of murder.

He should not be released. It sends out the wrong message to other violent, abusive men and makes women in such relationships more vulnerable if that is the attitude of the authorities.

SA is a scary place to live. People live in a heightened state of fear even in their own homes. Especially in their own homes.

We know that. Why would that be?
Many have emigrated to Australia but their arrogance, sense of superiority and disregard for others can unfortunately annoy their new neighbours in rural communities.

BlueBelle

Chestnut have you never encounter anyone (mostly men) enraged beyond belief when a woman doesn’t do what they want.. it’s white rage completely beyond their thought process But without a gun he would not have killed her
There was a reason the poor girl was hiding in the toilet trying to call for help she hadn’t gone for a wee

The place to run to when an abusive partner threatens violence is the bathroom where there will probably be a lock on the door.

Oscar Pistorius killed another human being deliberately. Whether he knew/thought it was his girlfriend only he knows. I hope, and yes GSM pray, that the anger management course he has/had will be successful because he surely needs all the help he can get to avoid anything like this ever happening again.

I was an Occupational Therapist in an NHS mental health setting for 22 years. I worked with many patients on a one to one basis and in groups to help them learn more appropriate strategies to manage their anger issues. I delivered many anger management courses when I moved over into education including in a prison setting.

Do they work? Yes for some, not so for others and the reasons some individuals do better than others are complex, many and varied. All my work with people with mental health difficulties was based on a CBT (Cognitive Behavourial Therapy) approach which relies on, particularly with regard to anger management, the individual accepting that other people do not ‘make’ them angry, and that they, not the person they are interacting with, are responsible for how they respond to anger provoking situations. If an individual cannot take that concept on board, we awe both wasting our time and some people are very entrenched in that belief. .

When asked to write reports on progress, I could only state that the individual had been taught strategies to manage their anger issues. I could not of course guarantee that they would chose to use them as and when the situation arose. Not being around them in those instances, I had no way of measuring how well they were implementing what they had learned, other than feedback in class and the thank you cards and positive response from those involved with them .

CBT is not a cure. It’s an approach that will work for you as long as you choose to use it. None of us react appropriately 100% of the time, but it is certainly possible to get a grip on your anger issues.

As previously stated, I am also surprised if he has been granted parole without doing anger management course whilst inside, surely these would be completed prior to any parole/ release, or how could the parole board assess him for behaviour changes ?

I didn't believe the story about an intruder, I thought he probably was angry and maybe didn't intend to actually kill her but nevertheless that's what he did and he deserves to be punished. Early release, just as in this country, devalues life.

most prisoners get released early on what they call good behaviour, and he will have conditions with his parole. he was found guilty, but the only person who knows the truth is him, he is a 37 year old man who has lost everything and only has himself to blame, one of the conditions is he can't talk to the media until his sentence ends in 2029.

Don’t get me wrong I definitely don’t think he intended killing her I think he was beyond anger and acted WITHOUT thinking

You pick up a gun, run to where the victim is and fire it - you have thought.

Buttonjugs

I find it incredibly difficult to believe that he thought there was an intruder. If I was in bed with someone the first thing I would do is wake the person next to me and say I think someone is in the house. The first thing I would assume is that it might be the person who is normally lying next to me and I would check they were there if I didn’t wake them up. I believe he was ina temper and Reeva locked herself in the bathroom because she was scared.

You haven't read all the details, have you?

His parole conditions include attending anger management classes. Reeva had told her friend that she was scared of him but afraid of what he would do if she told him she wanted out of the relationship.
I believe it was murder. Although nothing will bring her back, I don't think he should be released early. Reeva's family are still grieving.

I totally understand that Aysgarth I was once in a relationship that I was afraid to finish It’s not a comfortable place to be Poor girl

I don’t know if he is guilty or not. I do wonder what prison was for thought, if it’s simply containment it seems pointless. Surely anger management should have been addressed whilst in prison, rehabilitation in society should be the aim for people to be fit for release.

Many people have found that anger managment courses don't work, most abusive men manage to control their anger when it is advantageous for them to do so, they save their anger for their victims. They can find other ways of control and abuse that are more controlled. They do anger management for their own advantage not because they are unable to control themselves
www.healthyplace.com/blogs/verbalabuseinrelationships/2012/01/anger-management-likely-to-increase-domestic-abuse

Yes, that’s how parole works. For all offenders, not just the well-publicised ones.

I lived in SA for 19 years mostly in Cape Town where we felt a lot safer than we did during our short time in (then) Johannesburg.

I went back to CT on holiday recently and stayed for a while with friends who live in a gated community with very high walls and a 24/7 manned security checkpoint on arrival/exit. I’d imagine this is a similar setup to the complex OP was living in. This should have given anyone living there an added sense of protection and their security team would be the first point of call if you suspect an intruder. They would be minutes away.

I personally feel that OP due to his sporting success was treated as a top celebrity and led a very privileged life. I think he was always quite arrogant and used to getting everything his own way.

I believe the pair of them had a row that night and that RS escaped to the loo and that OP knew she was in there. He shot in a moment of rage. Whoever he was shooting at wouldn’t have survived that bombardment. Had he killed a burglar we would have heard nothing of this.

Guns are too easily carried in SA and I’ve witnessed many unfortunate incidents when someone has had too much to drink and feel that they’ve been disrespected or attacked who immediately go to their gun.

I think the arrest and guilty verdict would have given OP a real shock as I’m sure he thought he’d get away with it. The reality of losing his career and of going to prison must have changed him.

Thanks for your interesting post Mazz21

One reason I'm pleased we don't have guns in uk. I know they are allowed in certain circumstances buy happy that not every tom,dick and Harry can have one