Oscar Pistorius‘ verdict (culpable homicide) can be appealed by prosecutors in South African court, a judge ruled Wednesday.
If successful, the appeal could change Pistorius’ conviction for from culpable homicide to murder, meaning he could serve at least 15 years in jail.
Pistorius shot four times through a bathroom door, hitting and killing girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp inside, on Valentine’s Day 2013. Pistorius said he thought Steenkamp was an intruder behind the door.
South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeal will review the murder trial.
“I cannot say the prospect of success at the Supreme Court is remote,” Judge Thokozile Masipa said, according to Reuters.
A timetable for the appeal moving forward is not yet known.
The National Prosecuting Authority said it was preparing an appeal on Oct. 27, six days after Pistorius heard his verdict. It called the sentence “shockingly light.”
Pistorius, the first double amputee to run in the Olympics in 2012, could spend less than a year in prison with the rest of his current sentence under correctional supervision such as house arrest.
He is barred from competing in the Rio 2016 Paralympics.
