Oscar Pistorius' Lawyer, Barry Roux, Reportedly Admits 'I Am Going to Lose'

Barry Roux, the defence lawyer for South African Paralympian Oscar Pistorius, reportedly admitted “I’m going to lose” during an appeal hearing in Bloemfontein on Tuesday.

Erin Conway-Smith of the Independent wrote “Afrikaans-language media” stated Roux was heard conversing with state prosecutor Gerrie Nel after presenting arguments during the appeal session, when he was said to utter “but that I am going to lose is a fact” in Afrikaans.

As noted in the piece, it’s still unclear what context the comments were meant in. Roux was asked about the suggestion by Afrikaan Netwerk24, claiming he “cannot remember exactly” whether he used the words, per Conway-Smith.

It’s reported Roux’s comments were picked up as the hearing was broadcast on television and radio, with the lawyer leaving his microphone on. 

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Pistorius, a double amputee, was sentenced to five years in jail after his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp was shot dead in their home back in February 2013; he was convicted of culpable homicide, but prosecutors are seeking to change the verdict to murder. Pistorius was released from prison recently and is now under house arrest.

It was a testing day for Roux in court as he had to answer questions about the sentence in front of the Supreme Court. Sky News’ Alex Crawford noted here that Justice Leach in particular gave the lawyer a grilling:

As reported by Stephanie Findlay of AFP, Roux was put under sharp scrutiny from Justice Majiedt, who at one point advised the lawyer “I'm having difficulty following your argument.”

Earlier in the day, Nel had outlined the prosecution’s case for changing the guilty verdict, which could potentially see Pistorius back in jail. Judgement was reserved on Tuesday, meaning the hearing will continue at a later date that has yet to be set.