Knox cleared and flies home

AFTER four horrifying years in prison, Amanda Knox flew back home to Seattle in the United States as a free woman.  Her conviction was overturned in Perugia for the murder of fellow student; Meredith Kercher was overturned after over ten hours of deliberations.  Amanda nearly collapsed and wept when she heard the verdict that the gates towards freedom had just been well and truly opened.  The former boyfriend of Knox, Raffaele Sollecito, 27, also had his jail term quashed, leaving the Kercher family stunned and searching for answers.

     21-year old Meredith Kercher was found murdered in the house she had shared with Amanda Knox in Perugia in 2007, with her throat cut.  In the first trial, Knox and Sollecito were given 26 and 25-year jail term sentences respectively.  Now, they can look forward for a chance to restart their lives after this turbulent and hellish experience.  Amanda Knox has already written a letter and published it to the media; “Those who wrote, those who defended me, those who were close and those who prayed for me – I love you, Amanda.”  She is now thought to want some time back with her family in her hometown, though she is bound to be the target for a major primetime TV interview in the United States.

     Knox’s lawyer in the case told media outlets of her state of mind; "She was calm, serene and looking forward to going home and just spending some time with her friends and family.  She wants to get on with her life. She is a clever and intelligent girl who has been through a lot.  Amanda will now have some time in Seattle and then get on with her life and her family will also want to get back to theirs."

      Meanwhile, while the Kercher family will want to pursue potential legal challenges in the coming months, Perugia will try to return to some form of normality and the Italian legal system must now be under scrutiny for an urgent review.  Prosecutors claim that the decision is wrong and clearly disagree with the judge’s viewpoint that the evidence is unsustainable.  They are now considering taking the case to the Italian Supreme Court, which could take another year to sort out.  However, it is extremely unlikely that Knox will be sent back to Italy for any retrial, as the US would be unlikely to allow her extradition back to the country.  As for Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito, normality is something that they now have the chance to restore and establish their lives after a traumatic few years in prison.