The third anniversary of the death of Meredith Kercher, the British student who was murdered in Perugia, Italy, on 1st November 2007, is coming up. Her alleged murderers, American Amanda Knox and her Italian boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito, also in their early twenties, sentenced last year, are serving a long term sentence in an Italian prison. Rudy Guede, a drifter and a small time drug dealer originally from the Ivory Coast, also implicated in the murder, is currently serving a reduced sentence. He was the only one who apologised to the Kercher family for the murder of Meredith, hence the court showed leniency. But Steve Moore, a former FBI agent, who has been investigating the case independently, truly believes Amanda Knox "Foxy Knoxy" is innocent and has been the victim of a miscarriage of justice.
I remember vividly the murder of Meredith Kercher, I was in Italy at the time, visiting my mother, and news of the murder was all over the place. The media reported a sordid tale of sex games, involving knives and drugs, horribly gone wrong. Meredith's throat was slashed. Three people were involved in her murder, according to the prosecution. They were Amanda, her boyfriend Raffaele and Rudy Guede.
The case against Amanda and also Raffaele remains, despite everything, unconvincing. She and Raffaele gave confusing evidence but then they had been smoking marijuana and they probably panicked. Amanda has been portrayed as a sexual predator but, with respect for the memory of the deceased, she was no more promiscuous than Meredith. Moore believes there are problems with the way the investigation has been carried out and the trial conducted. His opinion is based on the blood and DNA evidence. According to him, Amanda could not have killed Meredith because there were no bloody footprints belonging to her or to Raffaele, there was no trace of her DNA in the bedroom. In addition the forensic techniques were faulty (several Italian forensic experts have denounced them as such) and the interrogation intimidating, hence Amanda's confusion.
Amanda Knox was given 26 years and her appeal is about to be heard. The trial has acquired political overtones as the Italian court system has been deemed to be biased and the way the trial was conducted has been thought to demonstrate strong feelings of anti-Americanism. There are plans to make a film about the murder case but both the Knox and the Kercher family have objected to it, feeling it may be too soon, especially as there is an appeal to be heard.
This remains one of the most puzzling murders ever committed. Apparently motiveless, the narrative developed around it is full of uncertainties, lies, misrepresentation, baseless accusations. Perhaps we will never truly know what happened that night. A young woman has died, she will never come back. Another young woman (and a young man) has had her life turned upside down and it is really unclear whether she had a part to play in the murder or not. Let's hope that the appeal might shed some further light.
For my part this case has struck a chord with me because I do believe that police techniques can be frightening and when people are under duress they can admit to anything. I also believe this young woman has been demonised by the media, the stories that have been told about her, the way her words have been twisted is nauseating. I do remember the scurrilous headlines that were floating around in Italian papers soon after the murder took place and internet forums in which people who had never met Amanda Knox and would never have anything to do with the investigation felt entitled to offer opinions based on their knowledge of the events as reported by the media, immediately taking sides and going as far as attempting to judge her character and moral fibre. A young woman who was sexually active, as many young women of her age are, was immediately branded as a predator and a nymphomaniac and that, to me, is revolting.
I admire the Kerchers' silence and desire not to be importuned by the media. But I feel Amanda's privacy too should be respected. Even if she were guilty of murder, which remains to be ascertained, she continues to be entitled to a fair trial and respect of her human rights. Is the time when witches were burnt really over, I wonder?
(All photos by Elisabeth Jakobsen and modelled by Alex B.)
I remember vividly the murder of Meredith Kercher, I was in Italy at the time, visiting my mother, and news of the murder was all over the place. The media reported a sordid tale of sex games, involving knives and drugs, horribly gone wrong. Meredith's throat was slashed. Three people were involved in her murder, according to the prosecution. They were Amanda, her boyfriend Raffaele and Rudy Guede.
The case against Amanda and also Raffaele remains, despite everything, unconvincing. She and Raffaele gave confusing evidence but then they had been smoking marijuana and they probably panicked. Amanda has been portrayed as a sexual predator but, with respect for the memory of the deceased, she was no more promiscuous than Meredith. Moore believes there are problems with the way the investigation has been carried out and the trial conducted. His opinion is based on the blood and DNA evidence. According to him, Amanda could not have killed Meredith because there were no bloody footprints belonging to her or to Raffaele, there was no trace of her DNA in the bedroom. In addition the forensic techniques were faulty (several Italian forensic experts have denounced them as such) and the interrogation intimidating, hence Amanda's confusion.
Amanda Knox was given 26 years and her appeal is about to be heard. The trial has acquired political overtones as the Italian court system has been deemed to be biased and the way the trial was conducted has been thought to demonstrate strong feelings of anti-Americanism. There are plans to make a film about the murder case but both the Knox and the Kercher family have objected to it, feeling it may be too soon, especially as there is an appeal to be heard.
This remains one of the most puzzling murders ever committed. Apparently motiveless, the narrative developed around it is full of uncertainties, lies, misrepresentation, baseless accusations. Perhaps we will never truly know what happened that night. A young woman has died, she will never come back. Another young woman (and a young man) has had her life turned upside down and it is really unclear whether she had a part to play in the murder or not. Let's hope that the appeal might shed some further light.
For my part this case has struck a chord with me because I do believe that police techniques can be frightening and when people are under duress they can admit to anything. I also believe this young woman has been demonised by the media, the stories that have been told about her, the way her words have been twisted is nauseating. I do remember the scurrilous headlines that were floating around in Italian papers soon after the murder took place and internet forums in which people who had never met Amanda Knox and would never have anything to do with the investigation felt entitled to offer opinions based on their knowledge of the events as reported by the media, immediately taking sides and going as far as attempting to judge her character and moral fibre. A young woman who was sexually active, as many young women of her age are, was immediately branded as a predator and a nymphomaniac and that, to me, is revolting.
I admire the Kerchers' silence and desire not to be importuned by the media. But I feel Amanda's privacy too should be respected. Even if she were guilty of murder, which remains to be ascertained, she continues to be entitled to a fair trial and respect of her human rights. Is the time when witches were burnt really over, I wonder?
(All photos by Elisabeth Jakobsen and modelled by Alex B.)
I don't know if she was involved or not, but i agree that the evidence handling and interrogation techniques would have gotten the case thrown out, here.
ReplyDeleteIt really makes no sense and many people in Italy have criticised this trial. It is not anti-Americansim, nor a case of unfairness of the Italian system but a miscarriage of justice and a trial that was not run competently. I am also sure that media coverage did not help
ReplyDeleteAlex, I saw an hour-long news story about the former FBI agent's findings. It now seems a rush to judgment fired by media flames.
ReplyDeleteThe early publicity made me dislike Amanda, as it suggested she and her boyfriend engaged in intimate, sexually passionate smooching while the crime scene was just being investigated. It is easy to see how an entire country could be swayed to hate her. You are absolutely correct in using the analogy to a witch hunt.
I very much hope that, if Amanda is innocent, she will be able to go home soon.
This whole account reminds me a little of the Jon-Benet Ramsey case. Sadly, after nearly fifteen years nobody really knows what happened there or whether her parents were or were not playing sex games with her. I can only pray that Amanda Knox gets a better outcome.
ReplyDelete