Cause of death Gunshot wound Eye color Blue/green Name Reeva Steenkamp | Years active 1997–2013 Role Model Hair color Blonde Height 1.71 m | |
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Full Name Reeva Rebecca Steenkamp Manager Ice Model ManagementPublicist: Sarit Tomlinson (Capacity Relations) Parents June Steenkamp, Barry Steenkamp Siblings Simone Steenkamp, Adam Steenkamp Similar People Oscar Pistorius, Thokozile Masipa, June Steenkamp, Gerrie Nel, Francois Hougaard | ||
Model Reeva Steenkamp's body has arrived in Port Elizabeth.
Reeva Rebecca Steenkamp (; 19 August 1983 – 14 February 2013) was a South African model. On Valentine's Day 2013, Steenkamp was killed by her boyfriend, Oscar Pistorius, who said he believed she was an intruder hiding in the bathroom. Pistorius was later found guilty of culpable homicide at his trial the following year, was given five years in jail and served a one-year prison sentence. On 3 December 2015, the Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa overturned the conviction for culpable homicide and substituted one of murder, a sentence carrying a minimum period of 15 years in prison in South Africa. The sentencing of Pistorius began on 13 June 2016 and concluding arguments were made on 15 June 2016. He was sentenced to 6 years in prison on 6 July 2016 rather than the minimum of 15 years.
Contents
- Model Reeva Steenkamps body has arrived in Port Elizabeth
- Profile reeva steenkamp
- Early life
- Career
- Modeling
- Television
- Personal life
- Death
- Media coverage after death
- References
Profile reeva steenkamp
Early life
Steenkamp was born in Cape Town to parents Barry Steenkamp, a horse trainer, and his second wife, June (née Marshall, previously Cowburn), who was born in Blackburn, England. She had two older half-siblings from her father and mother's respective previous marriages, Adam Steenkamp and Simone Cowburn.[8] The family later moved to Port Elizabeth, where she attended St Dominic's Priory School. After school she studied law at the University of Port Elizabeth, which became a part of Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree in 2005.
Career
After university Steenkamp worked as a paralegal and as a model. She applied to the bar in late 2011 and hoped to be a qualified legal advocate by the age of 30.
Modeling
Steenkamp began modeling at the age of 14. She was a finalist in the Weekend Post Faces of the Future competition in 2004 and in the Herald Miss Port Elizabeth contest in 2005. She appeared in FHM magazine as a model and cover girl and was the first face of Avon cosmetics in South Africa. She also modelled for the jewellery company Sivana Diamonds.
She was ranked #40 in the FHM 100 Sexiest Women in the World poll of South African FHM readers in 2011 and #45 in 2012. Her style icon was Marc Jacobs. She was a celebrity face of the Spirit Day anti-bullying campaign in 2012.
Television
Steenkamp once worked as the live roaming presenter for FashionTV in South Africa. She starred in television advertisements for a range of products, including Toyota Land Cruiser, Clover "The One", Redds and Aldor Pin Pop. She featured as a celebrity contestant on the BBC Lifestyle show Baking Made Easy in 2012.
At the time of her death, Steenkamp was signed up to appear on season five of the reality TV programme Tropika Island of Treasure and had filmed the series episodes on location in Jamaica. The screening of the series began airing as scheduled on 16 February 2013, two days after her death. The first episode of the series was dedicated to Steenkamp and was preceded by a video tribute to her.
Personal life
Steenkamp was a keen horse rider until she broke her back in a fall in her early 20s and had to learn to walk again. On the South African celebrity circuit she was a regular A-list guest at red carpet events and a noted socialite on the Johannesburg party scene.
Steenkamp had been dating Oscar Pistorius, a South African Olympic and Paralympic runner, since November 2012. She had previously dated Springbok rugby player Francois Hougaard.
Death
On Valentine's Day 2013, her boyfriend Oscar Pistorius shot her four times through the locked door of his bathroom while she was staying in his home. Her body was cremated at Victoria Park crematorium in Port Elizabeth on 19 February 2013 and the service was conducted by Pastor Kurt Sutton of the Oasis Family Church in Port Elizabeth. Pistorius was arrested and charged with murder. According to Pistorius, he shot Steenkamp believing she was an intruder. On 12 September 2014, he was found not guilty of murder, but guilty of culpable homicide in the case. On 21 October 2014 he was sentenced to five years in jail but only served 10 months. In December 2015, the Supreme Court of Appeals overturned the culpable homicide verdict and found Pistorius guilty of murder. On 6 July 2016 Judge Masipa sentenced Pistorius to six years in prison for murder.
Media coverage after death
Steenkamp and Anene Booysen, both young South African women killed in 2013, were named SA Persons of the year 2013 by the Daily Maverick.
In February 2014, eNCA broadcast a half-hour documentary special about Steenkamp's life titled Reeva: The Model You Thought You Knew.
On 12 September 2014, SABC 3 broadcast an episode of Special Assignment titled Oscar Pistorius: The Verdict. The programme highlighted the missing white woman syndrome media phenomenon in South Africa, given the disproportionate coverage of the trial and the Leigh Matthews murder trial with the coverage relating to the deaths of the black women Zanele Khumalo and Betty Ketani in similar circumstances and time.