Expert: Pistorius 'on Stumps' When He Bashed Door

Pistorius has claimed he put on his prosthetic legs first
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 12, 2014 8:17 AM CDT
Expert: Pistorius 'on Stumps' When He Bashed Door
Forensic investigator Johannes Vermeulen, with a cricket bat in hand, demonstrates on a mock-up toilet and door details of how the door could have been broken down.   (AP Photo/Alexander Joe, Pool)

A forensic expert testified today that Oscar Pistorius was not wearing his prostheses when he broke down his bathroom door after shooting girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, the BBC reports. Pistorius has said he was wearing them, and while cross-examining the witness, his defense team asked the expert to kneel while holding up his feet, which made him wobbly. Their argument: Pistorius couldn't have broken down the door with a cricket bat if he wasn't wearing his prostheses; the witness, however, argued that if Pistorius had enough balance to shoot a gun, he could also break down a door.

Pistorius has claimed he was on his stumps when he shot, but rushed to put on his prostheses before breaking down the door. The door itself is in court, the Telegraph reports. Also today, one of Pistorius' friends testified to Pistorius' risk-taking tendencies, saying the runner once drove a car at 124mph and took a picture of the speedometer as proof. But the defense says it was the friend, not Pistorius, who was actually driving. Yesterday, the same friend testified that he saw Pistorius fire a gun at a traffic light. (More Oscar Pistorius stories.)

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