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| Knox |
This year has been the year of headlines being taken to trial! This time it was Amanda Knox's case to be taken to court and today she was cleared of all murder charges. The other defendant Raffaele Sollecito has also been cleared of the murder charge. She still has to pay financial compensation to Patrick Lumumba, the bar owner who she initially blamed for the killing. Kercher's mother just seemed in shock. Knox walked out of the court in floods of tears, almost unable to hold herself up, followed shortly afterwards by Sollecito, who showed little expression on his face. She will now be processed and then released to her family.
The murder of Meredith Kercher, Knox's roomate, occurred in Perugia, Italy, on November 1, 2007. Kercher, aged 21 at the time of her death, was a British university exchange student from London. She was sexually assaulted and stabbed, and property belonging to her was stolen.
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| Kercher |
Rudy Guede, a resident of Perugia, was convicted in October 2008 of the sexual assault and murder of Kercher. He is now serving a reduced sentence of 16 years. Raffaele Sollecito, Amanda Knox, were convicted of sexual assault and murder in a separate trial in December 2009. The prosecution argued that a severed piece of Kercher's bra, including its metal hooks, revealed traces of both her DNA and that of Sollecito. Knox's DNA was matched to the handle of a kitchen knife recovered from Sollecito's flat, and the prosecution stated that Kercher's DNA
was on the blade.
A June 2011 report by court appointed forensic experts concluded that the previous results indicating that Kercher's DNA was on the knife blade appeared "unreliable because not supported by scientifically valid analytical procedures"
When questioned by cops, she was seen doing cartwheels in the station and when Sollecito and Knox were outside the flat as Kercher's body was being investigated, they were seen kissing many times. Her nickname of "Foxy Knoxy" did nothing to cool down people's disgust of her.
Knox and Sollecito were given sentences of 25 and 26 years respectively. Knox and Sollecito decided to appeal the Court's ruling and have obviously won.
I was watching live as she entered the courtroom. She seemed nervous and was taking deep breaths as her lawyer rubbed her back. At times she seemed to hold back tears. Finally as everyone stood up and the verdict was read in Italian, she let her emotions through and let the tears stream down her face, her lawyers hugged her and cheers of joy were heard in the courtroom.
Outside in the streets of Perugia, people were running cheering with joy and in other large crowds chanting
"DISGRACE" and calling their peers on the phone!
In statements given outside of the courtroom, Amanda's sister said
"We are glad that Amanda's nightmare is over" She
thanked the judges, those who have provided support from around the world and Knox's judges,
"who loved her".
"She has suffered for four years for a crime that she did not commit." Raffaele Sollecito's father said that the court has given his son back to him, adding:
"Raffaele has nothing to do with the death of Meredith Kercher." |
| Knox's mother |
Her parents are not speaking about whether they will immediately come to The States due to security measures. Knox's family have been receiving death threats.
This much like Casey's verdict will go down in legal history and same as with Casey, if they are guilty then they will get what they deserve.
Amanda Knox has left Italy a day after being let go free of her murder charges. She left Italy along with family members on a flight back to Seattle Washington.
