Oscar Pistorius sentence: #ThingsLongerThanPistoriusSentencing hashtag trends on Twitter

The paralympian was given five years in prison for fatally shooting girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp

Oscar Pistorius at the High Court in Pretoria

Judge Masipa today sentenced Oscar Pistorius to five years in prison over shooting his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day 2013.

He has also been sentenced to an additional three years in prison, wholly suspended, on the second count of a firearm contravention.

According to legal experts, he is expected to serve 10 months behind bars and the remainder under house arrest. Judge Masipa ruled a non-custodial sentence would send the wrong impression to the community, but a long sentence would not be appropriate because it would appear to lack mercy.

The Paralympian was cleared of murder but convicted of culpable homicide on 12 September.

The sentencing has been met with a mix of disbelief and fury on Twitter, accumulating in the hashtag: #ThingsLongerThanPistoriusSentencing hashtag.

Tweets have been both imaginative and diverse (The hair of Eastenders’ Phil Mitchell, along with Fall Out Boy song titles have both featured):

Pistorius is expected to be transferred to Pretoria Central prison, now known as the Kgosi Mampuru II correctional facility.