Oscar Pistorius' defense team is using his disability to try to keep him out of prison.
The Telegraph reported Tuesday that a probation officer testified that the double-amputee sprinter, who is back in court awaiting sentencing on a culpable homicide charge, would be vulnerable gang rape if he is sentenced for prison time.
Oscar Pistorius could escape jail time
She recommended house arrest instead.
Judge Thokozile Masipa is convening over arguments from the prosecution and defense in what they think the sentence should be for Pistorius, who shot and killed girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp during the early morning hours of Valentine's Day on 2013.
Reeva Steenkamp flushed the toilet just before Oscar Pistorius shot her through the door
In September, Masipa declared Pistorius innocent of murder charges but handed down the equivalent of a manslaughter charge. Conflicting reports exist as to the extent of jail time Pistorius could receive. Most media reports have indicated that Pistorius could face up to 15 years in prison.
But earlier this week, a legal expert told the Pretoria News under the condition of anonymity that no minimum or maximum guidelines exist.
Annette Vergeer, a probation officer in South Africa and witness for the defense, told the court about the dangers of drugs, gangs and sodomy in South African prisons, which she added are ill-equipped to handle disabled people.
Prison would "break" Pistorius, and "take away his future," she said, according to the Telegraph, adding: "How can we say Pistorius will not be a victim of gang rape?"
Vergeer said that Pistorius also would be exposed to heightened risks of transmission of HIV and tuberculosis due to overcrowding and poor sanitation.
It was part of the testimony that included the revelation that the Steenkamp family had accepted monthly payments of 6,000 rand (or about $540).
"They needed it; they needed it to live," Dup de Bruyn, the Steenkamp's lawyer, told reporters, adding that the Steenkamps intend to pay back the money.
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