As the trial of the South-African amputee athlete Oscar Pistorius resumed, the trial heard how Reeva Steenkamp screamed for her life and her cries may have been heard from 100 metres away.
It is possible Reeva Steenkamp’s screams on the night she was shot and killed by Oscar Pistorius were as loud as a plane’s engine, the court heard.
State Prosecutor Gerrie Nel has been questioning acoustic expert Ivan Lin on the sounds heard on Valentine’s Day last year when the athlete’s girlfriend was killed.
When asked if he would put Ms Steenkamp’s screams at 120 dB, Mr Lin said: “120 means extremely loud, you can almost hear it 100 metres away. It is a very slight possibility, but it is possible.”
Sky Correspondent Emma Hurd, who is in the courtroom, said: “Mr Nel is now going through Lin’s evidence about the possible volume of a woman screaming. Lin says he used 120DB – loud as a plane.
“Mr Nel is trying to make the point that Reeva Steenkamp would have screamed loudly because she was ‘screaming for her life’.”
After quizzing Mr Lin about some of the technical details in report, Mr Nel contended that, without exception, everybody heard a woman’s screams on that night.
He said: “Four state witnesses all heard screams by a woman. That must be reliable even for a scientist.”
Pistorius’s defence team have previously said the screams came from him, as he was upset that he had killed Ms Steenkamp.
Next to give evidence was Peet van Zyl, Pistorius’s manager.
Mr van Zyl, who has known the athlete since 2006, told the court Pistorius had a “heightened sense of awareness” and would always park his car in open spaces with plenty of lighting.
A month of psychiatric tests found Pistorius was not mentally ill at the time of Ms Steenkamp’s death and that he is fit to stand trial.
The results of the mental assessment may play a part in any future sentencing.
The judge ordered the evaluation after a psychiatrist giving evidence in the athlete’s defence told the court he suffered from generalised anxiety disorder, and that this may have influenced his judgement.
Pistorius denies murdering Ms Steenkamp, claiming he mistook her for an intruder in his home.
