Joined
·
404 Posts
Free at last !
Justice is served, and now this cute, charming young lady can move on, and make a few million$ on book/movie deals.
``````````````````````````
An appeals jury on Monday overturned the murder convictions of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito in the killing of her roommate Meredith Kircher four years ago.
Knox collapsed in tears after the jury declared that the evidence against the two was not reliable. Both she and her ex-boyfriend were then taken back to prison where they were to be formally freed.
The Kercher family looked on grimly as the verdict was read out by the judge after 11 hours of deliberations by the eight-member jury.
Outside the courthouse, some of the hundreds of observers shouted "Shame, shame!"
As Knox waited for the verdict to be read, she appeared tense — leaning forward in her chair, and panting and wincing between exchanges with her lawyer. A black cloak draped around her, she put her hands to her face several times.
Slander convictions against Knox and Sollecito were upheld, but since those were three-year sentences they were considered time served.
Earlier Monday, a tearful Knox told the jury that she did not kill her British roommate, pleading for the court to free her so she can return to the United States after four years behind bars.
Knox frequently paused for breath and fought back tears as she spoke in Italian to the eight members of the jury in a packed courtroom, but managed to maintain her composure during the 10-minute address.
"I'm not a promiscuous vamp. I'm not violent ... I have not killed, I have not raped, I was not there, I was not present," the 24-year-old American told a packed courtroom in Perugia.
"I want to go home, I want to go back to my life, I do not want to be punished and to have my life taken away from me for something I have not done, because I am innocent."
The jury weighed whether the 2009 convictions and prison sentences — 26 years for Knox, 25 years for Sollecito — should stand, be dismissed or altered.
The case made Knox an unwilling celebrity and placed Italy's justice system under scrutiny.
Knox, who was returned to her jail cell after her statement, was said to have been calm and trying to relax ahead of the verdict.
"She was playing guitar and singing in the chapel," Rocco Girlanda, an Italian lawmaker who has met Knox regularly and wrote a book about their meetings, told NBC News after seeing her following her plea.
"That’s how she relaxes. What I found incredible is that she has never looked so serene," he said, calling it a sign that she is confident the jury will listen to her plea and drop all charges against her.
Prison chaplain Sauro Scarabatti also met with Knox, telling NBC News that she looked "composed and collected, showing a remarkable self-control."
That strength, he added, might have worked against her over the years. "Some people might mistake that with a cold character," he said.
'Paying with my life'
Knox, who has spent the last four years in prison, looked tense as she entered the courthouse where she and Sollecito made their final case for their freedom.
"I lost a friend, in the most brutal and inexplicable way possible," Knox told the court in Italian. "My absolute faith in the police authorities was betrayed, I've had to face absolutely unfair ... and baseless accusations. I am paying with my life for things I did not commit."
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/44752948/ns/today-today_news/t/knox-verdict-reached-court-announce-it-shortly/#.TooZepS8uHM
Justice is served, and now this cute, charming young lady can move on, and make a few million$ on book/movie deals.
``````````````````````````
An appeals jury on Monday overturned the murder convictions of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito in the killing of her roommate Meredith Kircher four years ago.
Knox collapsed in tears after the jury declared that the evidence against the two was not reliable. Both she and her ex-boyfriend were then taken back to prison where they were to be formally freed.
The Kercher family looked on grimly as the verdict was read out by the judge after 11 hours of deliberations by the eight-member jury.
Outside the courthouse, some of the hundreds of observers shouted "Shame, shame!"
As Knox waited for the verdict to be read, she appeared tense — leaning forward in her chair, and panting and wincing between exchanges with her lawyer. A black cloak draped around her, she put her hands to her face several times.
Slander convictions against Knox and Sollecito were upheld, but since those were three-year sentences they were considered time served.
Earlier Monday, a tearful Knox told the jury that she did not kill her British roommate, pleading for the court to free her so she can return to the United States after four years behind bars.
Knox frequently paused for breath and fought back tears as she spoke in Italian to the eight members of the jury in a packed courtroom, but managed to maintain her composure during the 10-minute address.
"I'm not a promiscuous vamp. I'm not violent ... I have not killed, I have not raped, I was not there, I was not present," the 24-year-old American told a packed courtroom in Perugia.
"I want to go home, I want to go back to my life, I do not want to be punished and to have my life taken away from me for something I have not done, because I am innocent."
The jury weighed whether the 2009 convictions and prison sentences — 26 years for Knox, 25 years for Sollecito — should stand, be dismissed or altered.
The case made Knox an unwilling celebrity and placed Italy's justice system under scrutiny.
Knox, who was returned to her jail cell after her statement, was said to have been calm and trying to relax ahead of the verdict.
"She was playing guitar and singing in the chapel," Rocco Girlanda, an Italian lawmaker who has met Knox regularly and wrote a book about their meetings, told NBC News after seeing her following her plea.
"That’s how she relaxes. What I found incredible is that she has never looked so serene," he said, calling it a sign that she is confident the jury will listen to her plea and drop all charges against her.
Prison chaplain Sauro Scarabatti also met with Knox, telling NBC News that she looked "composed and collected, showing a remarkable self-control."
That strength, he added, might have worked against her over the years. "Some people might mistake that with a cold character," he said.
'Paying with my life'
Knox, who has spent the last four years in prison, looked tense as she entered the courthouse where she and Sollecito made their final case for their freedom.
"I lost a friend, in the most brutal and inexplicable way possible," Knox told the court in Italian. "My absolute faith in the police authorities was betrayed, I've had to face absolutely unfair ... and baseless accusations. I am paying with my life for things I did not commit."
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/44752948/ns/today-today_news/t/knox-verdict-reached-court-announce-it-shortly/#.TooZepS8uHM
