General Chat

............ the Kercher family are left in limbo, the prosecutors feel they had the right person convicted and now this....................

Amanda Knox, the American who was cleared on appeal of the murder of British student Meredith Kercher in Italy, has signed a book deal to "share the truth about her terrifying ordeal".

Publishing giant HarperCollins has acquired world rights to a memoir by Knox which it has tentatively scheduled to come out next year.

The company said: "For the very first time since her trial for murder, her four-year incarceration in Perugia, Italy, and her appeal and acquittal of all charges, Amanda Knox will share the truth about her terrifying ordeal.

"Knox will give a full and unflinching account of the events that led to her arrest in Perugia and her struggles with the complexities of the Italian judicial system.

"Aided by journals she kept during her imprisonment, Knox will talk about her harrowing experience at the hands of the Italian police and later prison guards and inmates.

"She will reveal never before told details surrounding her case, and describe how she used her inner strength and strong family ties to cope with the most challenging time of her young life."

The publisher has not said how much it is paying for the memoir but some reports have suggested the Knox deal is worth four million US dollars (£2.5 million).

Jonathan Burnham, senior vice president, Harper, said: "Many accounts have been written of the Amanda Knox case, and countless writers and reporters have speculated on what role, if any, was played by Knox in that tragic and terrifying sequence of events.

"No one has yet heard Amanda Knox's own account of what happened, and this book will give Knox an opportunity to tell the story in full detail, for the first time.

"It will be the story of a crime and a trial, but also a moving account of a young woman's struggle to cope with a nightmarish ordeal that placed her at the centre of a media storm, and led to her imprisonment."

The news comes two days after it was announced that prosecutors have asked Italy's highest criminal court to reinstate the murder convictions of Knox and her former boyfriend for the murder.

They lodged the appeal more than four months after an appeal court threw out the convictions of Knox, 24, and Raffaele Sollecito, 27.

Prosecutor Giovanni Galati said he was "very convinced" that Sollecito and Knox were responsible for stabbing to death 21-year-old Miss Kercher, who shared an apartment with Knox in Perugia.

The appeal, which was expected, marks the third and final stage in the criminal case against the pair.

They were found guilty in a lower court of killing Miss Kercher, from Coulsden, Surrey, in what prosecutors described as a sex-fuelled attack, and sentenced to 26 years and 25 years respectively.

An appeals court rejected the conviction, freeing Knox to return home to the United States after serving four years in prison.

A court-ordered DNA review in the appeal discredited evidence used to convict Knox and Sollecito in 2009.

The appeal court in October said the guilty verdicts against the pair were not corroborated, and the court had not proved they were in the house when Leeds University student Miss Kercher was killed in 2007.

Ivory Coast-born drifter Rudy Guede was convicted in a separate trial of sexually assaulting and stabbing Miss Kercher. His 16-year sentence, reduced on appeal from an initial 30 years, was upheld by Italy's highest court in 2010.

The high court is expected to issue its decision towards the end of the year. It cannot hear new evidence, and will make its decision based on what has been submitted in earlier trials.

Knox and her family have said they are not worried about the appeal, as her innocence "was clearly and convincingly proven in her appeal trial".

They have described the move as "simply another example of harassment by the prosecution against Amanda".

Tricky one, I am fence sitting which is unusual and uncomfortable for me :-|

I really don't know enough of the details to judge, whether she was or was not guilty.

I have to say I'm a fence sitter too...though I'd like to know more.

It wasn't a case I followed that closely so don't feel qualified to comment further. x

*sighs* double posted.

*passes cushions to Rose and Muffy and joins them*

Sorry, Sue, yet another fence sitter as I don't know enough about the case to comment.

I followed it slightly obsessively, read a lot of the evidence as did OH and we both felt the appeal should not have been allowed.

Regardless, this girl is making a reported £2.5m from a book about the dreadful murder of her 'friend'. A murder she was initially convicted for.

It's just sickening.

DIDNT KNOW ANYTHING SORRY

Yes. Just purely on the money making aspect I agree...it's sick making.
Mind you..........Kate McCann and her truthful account ...nope ...I won't go there lol .

*goes to crawl back under her stone*

Also a fence sitter . but I am not a fan of books like these as they are all one sided and I cant for the life of me understand why anyone would by it and read it, the same for Kate McCann all one sideed., and may I say normally full of self pity or basically BS!
I could write a book about my life sure as hell would be different account from say 1 of my sisters .

but.....if it were me, having been locked up for 4 years, would I use the opportunity to make money as 'recompense'...(assuming innocence of course) and knowing that inevitably a book would be written by someone else if not me?

I think I probably would.

If I'm being totally honest.

Though I can't think who would actually bother to read it....because it's not likely to differ from whatever she said in court lol...so I'd be best off reading police reports or court minutes........

I'd rather write it myself and know my 'feelings' were portrayed accurately than have it written by someone who would 'put words in my mouth' ...again assuming innocence.. if guilty I wouldn't risk it. I think people will read it to see if she 'sounds' guilty, much like (I suspect) many may have read Kate McCann's accounts..??

Politics and diplomacy come into play in these sorts of cases too imho x

**edit* I 'd want to read the official point of view in conjunction with hers to attempt to iron out any discrepancies ...she will have a vested interest in putting her side across....and they'd be doing likewise.....those who shout very loudly often have the most to hide......so I'd prefer to read both and come to my own conclusions based on fact x

The way she was welcomed home in the States you would have thought she was Mother Theresa! Couldn't watch it, each time it was on the news we switched over.

There is comment about the DNA evidence, which was the sole basis of the case against and the original conviction( it would seem I've only read quickly)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2044935/Amanda-Knox-freed-Now-DNA-evidence-trial-Kercher-murder-acquittal.html

It's very similar to the argument put in the Lawrence case as regards contamination of evidence? ...EDIT except in this case there would be every opportunity for Knox's DNA to be present 'legitimately' where it was 'found' ...

Sorry posted twice... glitchy tonight.

hmmmmmmm I was going to have a little looksie before bed...but having seen some of the UK press's somewhat unjournalistic approach to reporting in other *high profile* cases...I'll leave it til tomorrow and search worldwide....

if they said the sky was blue I'd look outside myself to check for sure lol..

I have absolutely NO FAITH in their standards whatsoever.

I'll come back to you on this Sue....you've whetted my appetite for a bit of a google about tomorrow x

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/italian-forensic-expert-defends-amanda-knox-dna-evidence-2350092.html

I'll have a read of course of any UK links provided...but will search for forums with translators who give a different point of view world wide.

Honestly....having followed other cases......our press is literally A JOKE ...and the independent.........pffffffft....Hari anyone ???? lol x

Muffy it's the sort of case we need Spugun on for a thorough review x