Why was Oscar Pistorius released on bail?

Chief Magistrate Desmond Nair said defense attorneys had met the threshold for proving the "exceptional circumstances" required by South African law for the release of a suspect charged with premeditated murder.

He said prosecutors had failed to prove that Pistorius was a flight risk or had a propensity toward violence.

What are the conditions of his release?

Announcing the original terms of Pistorius' release, Nair set bail at 1 million rand -- or about $112,000.

He banned Pistorius from drinking alcohol or returning to the property where the shooting happened. Nair also said Pistorius must surrender his passport and not approach any airports.

However, in March, Judge Bert Bam said the athlete's attorney could hold his passport instead of the court and that Pistorius was entitled to use it to travel outside South Africa.

Pistorius should report his itinerary a week before leaving and hand his travel documents back over to his lawyer within 24 hours of returning to South Africa, he said.

Bam also said Nair had not included the prohibition on Pistorius returning to his home or a requirement that he report to a police station twice a week in the written court order he signed.

This meant those provisions, which the magistrate only mentioned verbally in court, should be ignored, he said.

Prosecutor Gerrie Nel told the court he planned to serve Pistorius with an indictment on June 4.

Why was the issue of premeditation such a focus of the bail hearing?

There is only one crime of murder in South Africa -- and premeditation is not a requirement. It is simply defined as the intentional unlawful killing of another human being.

However, premeditation plays a role for bail and sentencing. For the purposes of bail, if the charge is premeditated, it falls into a category with the most serious crimes, for which the defense must show exceptional circumstances to obtain bail.

South African law makes it difficult for defendants accused of premeditated murder to get out on bail. The law requires evidence of "exceptional circumstances" to justify release, and the onus is on the defense to prove this. Grant said it was more difficult to deny bail to someone on the lesser charge.

Nair upgraded the charge against Pistorius to premeditated murder, saying he could not rule out the possibility that the track star planned Steenkamp's death. But the magistrate said he would consider downgrading the charge later.

Where will Pistorius' trial take place?

Despite being South Africa's lower courts, regional magistrates' courts can hear all criminal cases barring treason, so it is possible that Pistorius could be tried in such a court.

However, Grant said the high court, which hears cases deemed too serious for magistrates' courts, could be in a better position to hear Pistorius' case.

"Given the interest in this and given the possible sentencing that might follow -- if it is established that this is premeditated -- the high court would be in a better position to hear it and to sentence," he said.