Under South African law, murder carries a minimum sentence of 15 years for first-time offenders. But courts may deviate from this if they find ‘substantial and compelling circumstances’ to do so.
Paralympian Oscar Pistorius was sentenced to six years in prison for killing his girlfriend. It comes after a well-publicised TV interview which some believe was used to influence the judge.
The debate about the quality of High Court judges after the Pistorius trials reflects a different cultural clash in South Africa – one in which incompetence is often associated with black people.