Oscar Pistorius shouldn’t be jailed for killing Reeva Steenkamp because he has already suffered for the crime he didn’t consciously commit, his defence lawyer has told the court.

Pistorius believed an intruder had put his and Steenkamp’s lives in danger when he fired at her through a bathroom door on February 14, 2013, Barry Roux said on presenting his final sentencing arguments on Friday.

The double-amputee Olympic sprinter acted in a state of “vulnerability and anxiety”, but was subsequently “crucified” by the prosecution, media and social media which branded him as a “cold-blooded murderer”, the lawyer said.

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“The accused became a victim,” Roux said, adding he had never seen “an unfairer attack” on an accused in South Africa.

On the fifth day of sentencing hearings, Roux stressed Pistorius’ remorse for his “mistake” in killing Steenkamp.

“I have never seen an accused person as devastated as he is,” he said.

“He is broken, there is nothing left of this man,” the lawyer said, adding the athlete didn’t even have the money to cover his legal expenses.

Stressing the athlete’s relatively young age – 27 years – and the fact that he was a first-time offender, the lawyer pleaded for a non-custodial sentence.

Pistorius wept while listening to his lawyer.

Steenkamp’s parents sat in silence.

Prosecution wants 10 years

State prosecutor Gerrie Nel called for Pistorius to receive a minimum 10-year prison sentence for killing Reeva Steenkamp.

Slapping down claims that the “broke” and “broken” athlete had already suffered enough, Nel said “the minimum that society will be happy with is 10 years imprisonment.”

The devastating hollow-point bullets fired by Pistorius from his powerful handgun “ripped” through Reeva Steenkamp’s body, Nel said.

“When I think about that, it must have been horrific,” he said.

Nel was presenting his final argument ahead of the sentencing of the double-amputee Olympic runner, who was acquitted of murder but found guilty of culpable homicide in his girlfriend’s shooting death.

Culpable homicide is comparable to manslaughter.

Judge Thokozile Masipa could issue a suspended jail sentence and a fine, order the 27-year-old Pistorius to go under house arrest, or send him to prison for up to 15 years.

The judge adjourned Pistorius’s sentencing hearing and scheduled the handing down of his sentence for Tuesday 21 October.

“I want to thank both counsel for your assistance,” she told the court wrapping up seven months of evidence, “we will reconvene on Tuesday next week.”