South African athlete Oscar Pistorius should be
given "sufficient punishment" for killing his
girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, her cousin has
told the sentencing hearing in Pretoria.
Kim Martin said Pistorius, 27, "needs to pay for
what he has done".
He was convicted of culpable homicide last
month but cleared of murder and faces up to 15
years in jail, but the judge may suspend it or
impose a fine.
Prisons chief Moleko Modise later said the
athlete would be safe in prison.
He was responding to a defence witness who
said the disabled athlete would be "broken" by
prison, with his lawyers saying he should instead
serve house arrest and community service for the
killing.
Judge Thokozile Masipa has adjourned the
sentencing hearing until Friday morning.
The BBC's Andrew Harding in Pretoria says it
appears that the sentence itself will be
delivered on Tuesday.
It is Judge Thokozile Masipa's 67th birthday
on Thursday
'Not seeking revenge'
Ms Martin - the prosecution's first sentencing
witness - said on Thursday that she was fearful
of Pistorius.
"My family are not people who are seeking
revenge, we just feel that to shoot somebody
behind a door that is unarmed, that is
harmless, needs sufficient punishment," she
said.
On Wednesday, Ms Martin recounted her pain at
hearing that the 29-year-old South African model
had been shot dead, saying her death was "the
end of the world".
Pistorius' lawyer said prisoners had made
threats against the athlete
The prosecution maintained Pistorius shot
Reeva Steenkamp after an argument
At the scene: Andrew Harding, BBC News,
Pretoria
We got glimpses in court on Thursday both of
the prison life Oscar Pistorius can expect if
Judge Masipa chooses a custodial sentence for
him, and of the rather abrasive characters who
once were part of his social circle.
In recent days the public gallery in courtroom D
has seen an influx of conspicuously muscular
men who've sat close to Reeva Steenkamp's
family. Marc Batchelor is a former footballer and
debt collector who has clashed with Pistorius in
the past. Mikey Schultz is a self-confessed killer
and former boxer. Mark Strydom is also a well-
known heavyweight boxer.
At one point Mr Schultz and Mr Strydom sat,
unexpectedly, on the bench reserved for the
Pistorius family, and according to the
defendant's brother Carl, Mr Schultz mouthed an
obscenity at his sister Aimee, leaving her in
tears. Mr Schultz told me later that he'd done
no such thing but agreed with Mr Strydom and
Mr Batchelor that, in his opinion, Oscar Pistorius
was "a murderer" who was "getting off lightly".
Read more from Andrew Harding in court
Moleko Modise, the Acting National
Commissioner for Correctional Services, was later
called to defend the reputation of South African
prisons, which he said "can cope" with disabled
prisoners like Pistorius.
He said that a health assessment was conducted
on all inmates "within six hours of admission",
and a complete assessment would be completed
within 21 days to consider the "security
classification" and "social and psychological
needs" of the prisoner.
Under cross-examination from defence lawyer
Barry Roux, Mr Modise said he thought Pistorius
should be placed in the hospital wing of a
prison, not the regular section.
Mr Roux cited reports of undiagnosed
tuberculosis in South African prisons, as well as
rising numbers of incidents of assault and
torture in the past year.
Under questioning, Mr Modise said there was
one resident doctor for about 7,000 inmates at
the Kgosi Mampuru prison in Pretoria.
Mr Roux also said several newspapers had
reported threats made by prisoners against
Pistorius. However, Mr Modise said he was not
aware of any threats being made against
Pistorius.
Prosecutor Gerrie Nel has said he will call three
or four witnesses in all.
'Pistorius vulnerable'
Earlier in the week, social worker Annette
Vergeer said double-amputee Pistorius should
be placed under house arrest rather than sent
to prison, because he would be "a lot more
vulnerable than the normal man" in jail.
Mr Nel said her opinion of a sentence of house
arrest plus community service "cannot be
considered".
"If the court sentence is too light, and society
loses trust in the court, they will take the law
into their own hands," Mr Nel said.
"That's what the court has to guard against."
The Paralympic sprinter denied murdering Ms
Steenkamp after a row on Valentine's Day last
year, saying he shot her by mistake, fearing
there was an intruder in the house.
Ms Steenkamp, a law graduate, was hit three
times by bullets shot through a toilet door by
Pistorius at his home in the capital, Pretoria.
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