Closing arguments in the Oscar Pistorius Murder Trial are to begin on Thursday.  The prosecutor will go first, and then on Friday the defense will present its version of the events that led to the death of Pistorius’ girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day of 2013.

Pistorius shot and killed Steenkamp, firing through the door of the en suite adjacent to the couple’s bed, that much is not in doubt.  But Pistorius claims he mistook the noises coming from the bathroom for burglars breaking into his home.  The defense will go through the timeline of events to portray Pistorius as a panicked, disabled man convinced his home was under threat.

The state says that’s bunk, and that Pistorius shot Steenkamp after the two had quarreled.  Prosecutor Gerrie Nel will emphasize the testimony of neighbors who heard an argument from the Pistorius home, and conflicting accounts in the Olympic and Paralympic athlete’s testimony.

There is no jury; that was abolished in South Africa in 1969. Judge Thokozile Masipa will decide the case, advised by two amici who observed the trial from its start. Masipa is expected to issue her ruling in a week to a month.