South Africa has passed tough legislation that includes a requirement for a thorough background check for prospective gun owners. The check includes spouses and partners, and is repeated every few years, he said.

"People acquire guns believing they are more safe ... but they place themselves at great risk," Storey said. "We've made airplanes a gun-free zone. We need to bring that logic down to earth."

But the South African Gunowners' Association, a popular gun lobby group, has said citizens have the right to protect themselves from increasingly violent crimes.

"There are already more than enough laws and regulations to control the possession of firearms by private citizens," it says on its website. "Fewer and less complex laws reasonably, yet properly, applied could achieve the required objective."

One issue in South Africa is stolen guns. Guns are often stolen from home, reports show, but also from the police.

Statistics suggest that 18,196 police firearms have been lost or stolen during the five-year period beginning April 1 2005 to March 31 2011.

Beyond the violence, South Africans struggled with the idea that they've lost a hero, an athlete who embodied what it meant to overcome incredible physical odds.

When Pistorius was a toddler, his legs were amputated below the knees because of a bone defect.

Earning the nickname "Blade Runner," Pistorius runs on special carbon fiber blades.

He became the first Paralympic sprinter competing against able-bodied athletes at the London Olympics last year.

His face became a fixture on billboards across the nation, and he and Steenkamp were photographed at high-profile celebrity events and around town.

Hours after the news of his arrest, some of the billboards started coming down.

His sponsors also pulled away.

Nike removed an ad featuring him from its website showing him taking off for a run with the words "I am the bullet in the chamber."

Other Pistorius sponsors -- including prosthetics manufacturer Ossur, British Telecom, and Oakley, which makes sunglasses and other products -- expressed condolences and said they had no further comment.

The sports icon appeared in headlines across the nation, overshadowing the State of the Union address by President Jacob Zuma.

"Golden Boy Loses Shine," read a headline on the front page of the Sowetan.

The Pretoria court postponed Pistorius' bail hearing to Tuesday and ordered him to remain in custody until then. Prosecutors said they will argue that he committed premeditated murder.

Authorities said they will oppose bail, but did not provide their reasons for the decision.

The double amputee's London Olympics appearance brought controversy, as some said the prosthetic limbs gave him an advantage.