Oscar trial: door marks consistent with bat – expert
Marks on Oscar Pistorius's toilet door were probably caused by the corner of the bat he claimed to have used to bash it down, the High Court in Pretoria heard on Tuesday.
Chief prosecutor Gerrie Nel walks past a courtroom reconstruction of the toilet in which Reeva Steenkamp was shot and killed during the Oscar Pistorius murder trial at the high court in Pretoria, Monday, 14 April 2014. Picture: Antoine de Ras/Independent Newspapers Ltd/Pool
This was the testimony of forensic expert Roger Dixon, who said he had done test on another door.
“The last blow broke through the wood,” said Dixon.
He said the powerful blows had caused a strong vibration which resulted in the destruction and removal of a strip of tiles and plaster on the other side of the door.
Dixon also analysed the cricket bat Pistorius claimed to have used to break down the door.
The bat, with its tip soaked in Reeva Steenkamp’s blood, had grooves in it.
“The grooves occurred when the tip got stuck on the door,” said Dixon.
Explaining the difference between the two woods, Dixon said the door had been made of Meranti, while the bat was English Willow.
Meranti wood splintered easily.
“It ruptures suddenly, causing it so snap and break into a splinter,” said Dixon.
He was being led in evidence by Barry Roux, SC, for Pistorius.
Pistorius has been charged with murdering his girlfriend Steenkamp in his Pretoria house on February 14 last year.
He shot her through a locked toilet door, hitting her in the hip, arm, and head.
He claims to have mistaken her for an intruder.
Pistorius says he then bashed down the door to reach Steenkamp.
The paralympian furthermore faces three charges of contravening the Firearms Control Act, on which he has also denied guilt.
– Sapa
