By Cassie De Pedro
Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius vomited as a graphic testimony of Reeva Steenkamp’s injuries was read in court today during his ongoing murder trial.
The testimony came from pathologist Gert Saayman, who gave a report of the autopsy examination he performed the day after Steenkamp died. According to Saayman she had suffered four gunshot wounds, to the head, hip, elbow and hand. According to Saayman her death could have been caused by any one of the wounds to her head, hip or elbow.
It was also revealed by the pathologist that Pistorius used Black Talon bullets, which open upon impact and are designed to cause maximum tissue damage. Fragments of wood from the door and pieces of her own bone found inside her body added to the already horrific images of the injuries sustained by the 29-year-old model.
The BBC’s Pumza Fihlani reported that Pistorius’ body jerked and he retched as he heard the pathologist’s evidence, becoming more distressed as the pathologist explained how incapacitating Steenkamp’s injuries would have been if she had survived.
This was day six of Pistorius’ trial, which is set to continue with further testimony from Dr Saayman tomorrow.
Featured image: Oscar Pistorius competes in the first round of the 400m at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Photo: Jim Thurston/CC/flickr
