WATCH-- Oscar Pistorious Gets Sick And Vomits At Trial As Girlfriend's Injuries Are Detailed

Oscar Pistorious reaching for a bucket in Court

PRETORIA, South Africa – Clutching a white handkerchief in his fingers, Oscar Pistorius tried to cover his ears and threw up.

The Paralympian gagged and heaved with sobs, as forensic pathologist Gert Saayman detailed the injuries he inflicted on his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, in the pre-dawn hours of Valentine's morning last year.

Hunched over a plastic bucket in the dock, the murder-accused vomited repeatedly, as Saayman read his 12-page matter-of-fact autopsy report, paragraph by paragraph.

Concerned about Pistorius' state, Judge Thokozile Masipa initially called for a brief adjournment to allow the athlete to gather himself. But when court reconvened, it became evident that his emotional upheaval was not a passing episode.

"Is your client fine?" Judge Masipa asked defense counsel Barry Roux.

"He's not fine, my lady," he replied. "He is very emotional and that isn't going to change."

Oscar Pistorious and Reeva Stenkamp in a party in 2012

 

Monday's testimony began with Pieter Baba, the nightshift security guard who said he spoke with Pistorius after he shot Steenkamp, insisting that the athlete told him, "Everything is fine."

Baba was challenged by the defense about his recollection of Valentine's morning, with Roux presenting phone records to the court that suggest Pistorius called Baba first. Roux says Pistorius told Baba "he" was fine, rather than speaking about the situation as a whole.

Saayman's testimony followed, as the court tried to focus on the evidence presented, not the audibly retching figure in the dock.

The pathologist requested a court order – granted by the judge – preventing the live broadcast of his testimony, citing ethical concerns that the unfiltered broadcast of explicit and graphic evidence would not respect the dignity of Steenkamp. Judge Masipa chose to also restrict live reporting via Twitter and online blogs.

The bullets that killed Steenkamp were "designed to cause maximum tissue damage," Saayman told the court, "mushrooming" on their path after initial contact with human tissue. A "Black Talon" bullet, which Saayman explained as expanding like sharp, jagged petals of a flower, was recovered from Steenkamp's head wound.

"It is what nightmares are made of," prosecutor Gerrie Nel told the judge. Read more...

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