Legal Expert Chris Marnewick Says Oscar Pistorius Was Guilty of Culpable Homicide, Not Murder
- Retired senior advocate Chris Marnewick spent six years analysing the full Pistorius court record before drawing his conclusions
- Marnewick argued that the appeal court erred in finding Pistorius guilty of murder, and that Judge Masipa's original ruling was correct
- His new book on the trial examines whether Pistorius received a fair trial and challenges the social media narrative around the case
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A retired senior advocate and legal scholar has concluded, after six years of detailed research, that former Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius should have been found guilty of culpable homicide rather than murder, and that the appeal court that overturned the original verdict got it wrong.
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Chris Marnewick SC, who practised as an advocate in Durban from 1976 until his retirement in 2012 and took silk in 1991, has published a new book titled Oscar Pistorius: The 'Big Lie' and the Right to a Fair Trial, released by Naledi Uitgewers. Speaking to Maroela Media from New Zealand, where he now resides, Marnewick said his central concern was the gulf between public perception of the trial and what the official court record actually shows.
What the court record reveals
Marnewick worked through the official trial transcript word for word, drawing on his experience as a former prosecutor, magistrate and senior criminal advocate, as well as his time sitting as an acting judge on four occasions.
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His conclusion challenges the widespread narrative.
"No, Oscar was not innocent. On his own version, he was negligent, and therefore guilty of culpable homicide. Judge Masipa was correct to find that. But she was also correct, on the evidence, in finding that Oscar did not target Reeva; he believed she was still behind him in the bedroom, and that he also did not intend to kill the presumed intruder. She was right, not guilty of murder," Marnewick said.
On the appeal court's subsequent murder finding, he was direct:
"The appeal court, with the necessary respect that I show here, simply missed the mark."
He pointed to specific evidence that was sidelined in public debate, including testimony from a security guard who patrolled the estate on the night in question and reported that everything at the property was quiet and normal.
Source: Getty Images
Social media versus the facts
Marnewick identified the distortion of the trial by social media as the driving force behind the book.
"Everything we see and read on social media is a perception, and not necessarily the truth," he said.
He was also motivated by hearing an American advocate argue that the conduct of Pistorius's cross-examination could, under United States legal standards, have warranted a mistrial finding.
The book is divided into five sections and costs R350. It will be launched at the fourth Innibos Boekenaweek, running from 28 to 30 August 2026 at Kaapsehoop, where Marnewick will appear in conversation with Jana van der Merwe, one of the journalists who reported on the original trial. The book is available for order through Graffiti Boeke.
Pistorius appears to have settled into a quiet, largely unrecognised routine in Waterkloof, one of Pretoria's more affluent suburbs, accompanied by a small brown miniature poodle named Maggie. It has been further reported that Pistorius has taken up a position with a sound engineering company.
Reeva Steenkamp's sister reacts to Oscar Pistorius' partner
Briefly News previously reported that Oscar Pistorius has settled into parole life with a new job, a church community and a new relationship with Rita Greyling
Reeva Steenkamp's sister Simone Cowburn reacted strongly to photos of Rita, pointing to a striking physical resemblance
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Source: Briefly News
