Judge: Oscar Pistorius trial will take two-week break

Oscar Pistorius faces 25 years to life if found guilty of murder. (Gianluigi Guercia/Getty Images)

There will be a two-week break in the Oscar Pistorius murder trial after Thursday's proceedings and it will resume on Monday, May 5, judge Thokozile Masipa announced on Wednesday.

The 27-year-old Pistorius has maintained that he unintentionally killed girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, and he has broken down on a nearly daily basis since he took the witness stand on April 7.

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But the request for an adjournment came from the chief prosecutor, because a member of the prosecution team has to attend another case.

The judge said the trial has lasted longer than expected and noted that the court record is already nearly 2,000 pages long. The trial started on March 3 and was initially scheduled to last three weeks.

The defense supported the break.

From the Associated Press report: "Chief defense lawyer Barry Roux has said he will call between 14 and 17 witnesses and predicted he would finish presenting evidence by mid-May. Forensic expert Roger Dixon, the third witness called by the defense, was testifying Wednesday, the 24th day of the trial. He followed Pistorius, who was cross-examined by prosecutor Gerrie Nel for five days.

"In his testimony, Dixon, a former policeman, contradicted previous opinions given by a police expert and a pathologist on details of the wounds suffered by Steenkamp when she was shot through the toilet door by the double-amputee athlete."