South Africa's Constitutional Court Dismisses Oscar Pistorius Appeal For Murder Sentence

The Constitutional Court in South Africa has dismissed an application by Oscar Pistorius to appeal his 13-year jail sentence.

South Africa's Constitutional Court has dismissed Oscar Pistorius's application to appeal his sentence for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in the early hours of Valentine's Day in 2013.

Pistorius, a former Paralympic champion and celebrated amputee runner at the 2012 Olympics, was originally convicted of manslaughter before he was convicted and sentenced to six years in prison for Steenkamp's murder. Prosecutors argued it was "shockingly lenient" and it more than doubled to 13 years and five months in November 2017. Pistorius served 10 months his five-year sentence before he was released and placed under house arrest. The earliest he will be eligible for parole is 2023.

According to News24 in South Africa, a court order dated March 28 states: 

"The Constitutional Court has considered the applications for condonation and leave to appeal. It has concluded that the application for condonation should be granted, but that the application for leave to appeal should be dismissed as it does not engage this Court's jurisdiction."