After a Friday court hearing, accused murdered Oscar Pistorius was moved from the jail he was staying at to a different facility, one better equipped to handle his special needs. The news came on Friday following an earlier report in which authorities said that Pistorius would be allowed to keep his carbon-fiber legs while in custody.
A representative for authorities in South Africa said:
Oscar [Pistorius] has now been moved from the Boschkop Jail to the Brooklyn Police Station in Pretoria due to his handicap needs.
The normal cell he was in was not suitable for Oscar so he was moved in order to accommodate to his special needs.
Earlier, it was said that, despite the fact that it would seem that Oscar Pistorius' carbon-fiber legs would make excellent weapons, law enforcement had agreed that the former Olympian will be allowed to keep them while in jail. The situation, it was said, was a set of "special circumstances."
Normally, it was said, South African prison officials confiscate any item that can be used as a weapon. That would, you would assume, include shivs, clubs, and anything that can be filed down to a point (including hard plastics). Not only could Pistorius' legs be used as a form of club, they could be filed down. Realistically, though, if he were to do so, he would find any escape hampered.
However, the authorities will be cracking down on some perks Pistorius saw on his first night in jail. He will no longer be allowed to accept visitors. The police said that Pistorius will only be allowed to meet with his legal team.
In addition, he will no longer be allowed home-cooked meals. His family dropped off a care package with a home-cooked meal on Thursday night.
Officials say Pistorius is now "resting comfortably" in his new cell. Although the words "suicide watch" was not mentioned, they added that he will be checked on every half-hour.
Pistorius has been arrested in the murder of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp. On Friday, prosecutors said they would pursue a charge of premeditated murder against him. He was formally charged at Pretoria Magistrates Court with one count of murder in the slaying of Steenkamp.
Pistorius was born with fibular hemimelia (congenital absence of the fibula) in both legs. When he was 11 months old, his legs were amputated halfway between his knees and ankles.
At the 2012 Summer Olympics on Aug. 4, 2012, Pistorius became the first amputee runner to compete at an Olympic Games. In the first heat of the 400m race, he finished second place with a time of 45.44 seconds (which had been his best time of the season at that point), advancing to the semifinals which were held on Aug. 5, 2012. He ran in the second semifinal, where he finished eighth, which was last, with a time of 46.54 seconds.
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