A prosecutor on Oscar Pistorius' case expressed his shock regarding a corrections social worker's recommendation that a convicted killer be sentenced to only three years in house arrest, therefore sparing him jail time.

Correctional services social worker Joel Maringa testified on Monday that the famed Paralympian sprinter who shot his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp dead should be spared from prison time because he has been "cooperative" and should instead be sentenced to three years of "correctional supervision," leaving the convict on house arrest.

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Maringa, who stood witness for the defense on Monday - the first day of the athlete's sentencing - cited that convictions of culpable homicide often did not result in imprisonment.

"We are basically not saying that he should be destroyed because he will still be coming back into the community," he stated urging the court to order Pistorius to perform 16 hours of community service for a month, take anger management courses, and prohibit him from consuming alcohol or drugs and from owning a gun.

However, Prosecutor Gerrie Nel incredulously asked if the social worker had read the verdict saying that the suggestion for a sentence is "shockingly inappropriate."

Maringa reiterated that correctional supervision is not a "getaway sentence" and emphasized that it would still involve strict provisions imposed by the court.

Judge Thokozile Masipa, a South African woman who decided that Oscar Pistorius had not intended to murder his girlfriend and convicted him of negligent killing instead, will hear arguments between the prosecution and the defense, as well as psychological and probation experts, before deciding about the convict's fate this week.

Earlier in court, psychologist Dr. Lore Hartzenberg described how the double amputee was remorseful after the incident and suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

She also noted how he sometimes cried for hours during their session and described him to be "a broken man who has lost everything." 

TagsOscar Pistorius, oscar pistorius update, Reeva Steenkamp, sentencing, trial, house arrest