Gun experts say Oscar Pistorius “broke every rule” in the book

Andre Pretorius – the gun expert who wrote the firearm licence test that Oscar Pistorius passed just a few weeks before Steenkamp’s shooting – said today in an interview with ABC News that the athlete failed to adhere to gun safety rules on the night of Valentine’s day last year because he shot through the door without knowing what was on the other side.

Pritorius’ opinion tallies with the testimony of Sean Rens, Pistorius’ former gun teacher, who said last week that the fact Pistorius fired through the door without calling out first “came as a big surprise to the general public because … he got the answers correct when he took the test not too long ago, but unfortunately the night of the shooting he’s broken every rule,” Rens said.

Rens is the manager of the International Firearm Training Academy in Walkerville, south of Johannesburg and trained Pistorius at the range as well as procuring Pistorius five guns and six hundred rounds of ammunition using his firearm licence. In his testimony he spoke of how Pistorius had a “great love and enthusiasm” for guns.

Rens also read from the firearms licence test in which Pistorius achieved a near-perfect score. One question was: “Explain the legal requirements when using a firearm for private use,” to which Pistorius answered: “Attack must be against you, it must be unlawful, it must be against persons.”