Many an onlooker has wondered how Oscar Pistorius, accused of murdering girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, can sleep at night knowing what he did.

The answer from the mouth of Pistorius is that he can’t, not soundly anyway.

The 27-year-old is now testifying on his own behalf. His turn on the stand is what many have been eagerly awaiting.

Much of what Pistorius has had to say thus far has been about how sorry he is and how much emotional trauma he has suffered.

He tearfully claimed that he sometimes wakes up at night in a state of terror.

Pistorius also tried to communicate his sorrow to the surviving family members of his 29-year-old girlfriend.

“There hasn’t been a moment since this tragedy happened that I haven’t thought about your family,” said Pistorius. “I wake up every morning and you’re the first people I think of, the first people I pray for.”

Of the events that day, the former Olympian claimed that he killed his girlfriend by accident, having mistaken her for an intruder.

Oscar #Pistorius has told the court about his religious faith and started crying as he said that meeting Reeva Steenkamp was a "blessing"

— Sky News Newsdesk (@SkyNewsBreak) April 7, 2014

Oscar Pistorius is effectively parking the bus as his defence strategy. Blocks of paranoia and victimisation, a wall of emotion & exhaustion

— Melissa Reddy (@1stLadyOfFooty) April 7, 2014

Oscar Pistorius has nightmares about killing Reeva Steenkamp. Good. And I hope he does every night for the rest of his life.

— Dr Morose (@rabelazy) April 7, 2014

The prosecution has fought to establish cold-blooded intent. They have moved to emphasize both Pistorius’s bad temper and his excessive obsession with guns. The implication is that on that early morning of February 14th, 2013, Pistorius angrily shot and killed his girlfriend and is now lying to avoid jail time.

Despite the picture painted by prosecutors, Pistorius has remained adamant that he mistook her for someone else and would never have shot his girlfriend outright.

Unfortunately for the defendant, there is a mountain of contradicting evidence that he will likely answer to on cross-examination.

There is eyewitness testimony placing a woman’s screams among the gunfire. How could Oscar Pistorius, at such a close proximity, not hear his girlfriend screaming as he fired? It has been claimed by his defense attorney that it was Pistorius himself that neighbors heard that morning.

Pistorius may also have to answer to the questions raised by the testimony of ex-girlfriend Samantha Taylor. She testified that during such displays of paranoia, Pistorius would always wake her up without fail. Why didn’t Pistorius do the same for Steenkamp?

There are many questions that await answers far more relevant to the case than Pistorius and his ability to sleep at night.

Image via YouTube