It will be either jail or house arrest for Oscar Pistorius today

Pretoria South Africas fallen star Oscar Pistorius could be jailed for 10 years or return to serve house arrest today when he will be sentenced for killing model girlfriend Reeva SteenkampLate Reeva Steenkamp and inset Oscar PistoriusIn her decision judge Thokozile Masipa has to balance the threat the Paralympic gold medallist poses to society against his likelihood of rehabilitation and eventual reintroduction to public lifeAcquitted of murder Pistorius was found guilty last month of culpable homicide a conviction whose penalty mdash which ranges from a fine to 15 years behind bars mdash is at the sole discretion of the judgeLast week Pistorius lawyers argued that the 27yearold should be sentenced to three years correctional supervision also known as house arrestHe would then do 16 hours of community service a month suggested the defence In an eloquent closing argument defence lawyer Barry Roux said Pistorius is an ideal candidate for a noncustodial sentence given his remorse his status as a firsttime offender and the fact he would be vulnerable in South Africas notoriously brutal jails as a result of his disabilityPistorius is a doubleamputee athlete who made history by becoming the first Paralympian to compete against ablebodied athletes at the 2012 London Olympics Roux said Pistorius is a broken man who has genuine remorse after shooting Steenkamp four times through a locked toilet door early Valentines Day morning last yearAs his lawyer chronicled how Pistorius has lost his friends and fortune the sprinter uncontrollably wept in the dock wiping tears off his face with a handkerchief State prosecutor Gerrie Nel attacked the defence claim that Pistorius is repentant claiming he offered blood money to Steenkamps parents to reduce his likelihood of going to jailIn South Africa where a 24hour news channel is dedicated to the athletes court proceedings and the topselling book in stores is about Pistorius Nel warned that judge Masipas sentencing will be a litmus test of the strength of the countrys justice systemHighlighting Pistorius gross recklessness Nel said the only appropriate sentence for the athlete was incarceration The minimum term that society would be happy with would be a 10year minimum imprisonment sentence This is a serious matter The negligence borders on intent said Nel adding that a house arrest sentence would be shockingly inappropriate and would cause South Africans to lose faith in their legal system and turn to vigilantismIf the court sentence is too light and society loses trust in the court they will take law into their own hands he said Legal experts are divided on which way Judge Masipa will swing Its quite a difficult decision to make for any judge said William Booth a criminal lawyer based in Cape TownThere is a strong argument to be made for certainly a period of direct imprisonment You do have to send a message to the public said Booth Yet even if Pistorius does not get jail Booth says that does not mean he will not be punished Hes not going to walk out scotfree said Booth pointing out that correctional supervision is recognised as a fairly severe sentencePistorius defence did well to underscore alternative penalties to prison and show that Pistorius is not receiving special treatment because of his status said Kelly Phelps a law lecturer at the University of Cape Town