Amanda Knox has 'heart in her mouth' as pair await murder verdict

The Telegraph ^ | January 30, 2014 | Nick Squires, Florence

[Uncle Chip]

Amanda Knox will have her “heart in her mouth” when a court in Italy decides whether to clear her of involvement in the murder of Meredith Kercher or uphold a guilty conviction she received five years ago.

The American student is awaiting the verdict in the latest round of a complex, seven-year legal process at her home in Seattle.....

Her lawyers in Florence said they are confident the American will be cleared of guilt in the murder of Miss Kercher, a Leeds University student who was studying in Perugia in Umbria when she was killed in 2007.

Carlo Dalla Vedova, one of the Italian lawyers representing the woman nicknamed “Foxy Knoxy”, said he felt "serene" about the verdict, which is expected to be handed down later today.

He said the only possible outcome from the jury’s discussions must be "the innocence of Amanda Knox." Miss Knox, 26, has not attended any of the hearings in the re-trial, which started in September.

Mr Sollecito, on the other hand, has made frequent court appearances, always in a purple sweater, the color of the local Florentine football club. He was in court again today, accompanied by his father and other relatives.....

Lawyers for Miss Knox and her former lover maintain that the murder was committed by one person alone – Rudy Guede, a local drifter and small-time drug dealer who is serving a 16-year jail term after being found guilty in a separate trial.

Guede, who fled Italy after the murder and was then extradited from Germany, has admitted that he was in Miss Kercher’s room that night but denies that he killed her.

Prosecutors insist that the murder was committed by more than one killer and that Miss Knox and Mr Sollecito took part in the killing along with Guede.

[Uncle Chip]

Verdict expected today --

[Sacajaweau]

The French Courts are crazy. Do they still have the guillotine, too?

[ZULU]

This an Italian court sideshow.

She’s American, she’s not guilty, she was determined to be not guilty in an earlier trial and they can go $)*(^#$^&*# themselves over there!

[Uncle Chip]

This is an Italian court and apparently in Italy they have knives with three handles on them.

[dinoparty]

I personally think she did it. Whether that has been proven sufficiently is another question.

[Uncle Chip]

So you don’t believe that this Rudy Guede did it?

[dinoparty]

I believe Ms. Knox had a role, based on her very odd behavior and changing stories the following day.

[Sacajaweau]

Thanks....Don’t know why I thought French...Just the cruelty I guess.

[Sacajaweau]

Girls rarely kill their rivals. They might fight and sputter...but kill??

[Ramius]

Why is that? I haven’t yet seen any convincing evidence that she’s guilty but I have seen a lot of evidence of prosecutorial misconduct.

[Uncle Chip]

What role could that have been???

How many people does it take to kill someone in Italy???

[EnquiringMind]

I believe a girl - any human being - who is in a drug-hazed trance will do anything. I believe she had a role in the murder. That’s my opinion.

What happens if they find her guilty (again)? Does she go back to jail in Italy?

[Pecos]

My training film on being Italian is “The Godfather”; for my wife, it's some chick flick that I have mercifully forgotten the name of. In “The Godfather”, to kill the big body guard (sorry, can't remember his name), it took one guy to pin his right down down to the bar with an ice pick and another guy to garrote him.

[Ramius]

Changing stories? After being badgered all night and day in a foreign language I can think of a number of ways a lunatic prosecutor could twist my words. Keep in mind that this prosecutor has been sanctioned many times for misconduct in other cases. He fakes evidence and withholds exculpatory evidence. He loves to play to the media. He’s a nutburger.

It’s been a while since I’ve read up on this, but that was my takeaway from before.

[liberalh8ter]

There isn’t a shred of physical evidence that Knox or her boyfriend had anything to do with this murder. The prosecutors story involving crazy sex is a figment of his sick mind and if I remember correctly, he’s made up stories in other cases before. Going by memory, he did the same thing in the famous Florence serial murder case. But as with all things in Italy, he’s related to someone of importance so no matter how incompetent, he gets to keep on doing what he’s doing.

[SeminoleCounty]

Knox is not guilty...in every way possible...

The Italian appeals courts already ruled het innocent...this is just double jeopardy. If Knox wasn’t a hot American girl she would never been arrested

[Uncle Chip]

What happens if they find her guilty (again)?

They seek psychological help for the jury.

[Mase]

Good grief, have you read anything about what happened to her while she was in custody? Knox was a young and fragile girl whose friend was violently murdered by some third-world scumbag. The prosecutor is another scumbag who has a long history of setting people up for conviction for crimes they didn't commit, by lying and falsifying evidence. This guy even forced, by threat, an American journalist to run from Italy because his coverage was exposing the dirtbag for misconduct in another case. This poor girl was beaten in custody and would have said anything to make them stop. I'm sure all that would have absolutely no impact on a tough guy like you, but this poor girl was probably scarred for life by what happened here......and then to spend all that time in jail....for something she never did. Screw those people, they are all scum.

[SeaHawkFan]

There is no way she would be extradicted to Italy.

This just means she can never go back to Italy, or possibly other cuntries that might send her to Italy.

[GIdget2004]

“I believe a girl - any human being - who is in a drug-hazed trance will do anything.”

This current trial didn’t even suggest that there was anything drug-related with the killing. Prosecutors contend that it was the result of escalating arguments about the cleanliness of the apartment.

If she’s found guilty, she’ll be sentenced again. They’ll surely appeal again, and Italy could try to extradite her, but apparently experts suggest they may not even try to get her back there.