Amanda Knox slander conviction upheld by Italy’s top court

Amanda Knox’s notorious ineligible saga has yet travel to an end, astir 20 years aft she was arrested and jailed for the 2007 execution of her roommate, Meredith Kercher, during a survey overseas programme successful Italy.

Italy’s apical tribunal connected Thursday upheld Knox’s slander conviction, brought against her aft she wrongfully told authorities Congolese barroom proprietor Patrick Lumumba was the 1 who killed Kercher.

The court’s determination foiled Knox’s last-ditch effort to wholly wide herself of transgression wrongdoing successful the lawsuit of Kercher’s slaying.

“This is my last bid to wide my sanction erstwhile and for all,” she wrote connected societal media Wednesday nighttime portion awaiting the verdict. “I americium not a liar. I americium not a slanderer. I was not contiguous astatine my location erstwhile Meredith was murdered.”

Knox, a Seattle native, was a 20-year-old pupil surviving successful the Italian metropolis of Perugia erstwhile she and her then-boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, were arrested for sidesplitting Kercher. The British student was recovered with her pharynx slit connected Nov. 7, 2007, beneath a broad connected the level of the chamber she shared with Knox successful the Hilltop University dorms.

Patrick Lumumba arrives astatine the archetypal conception of the Supreme Court successful Rome, successful Rome, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Authorities astir instantly homed successful connected the mates arsenic premier suspects successful the case, which garnered planetary involvement and spawned sensational quality headlines worldwide. Throughout the ineligible proceedings, resulting successful two convictions and 2 appeals for Knox earlier she was yet acquitted of murder successful 2015, the media dubbed the young pupil “Foxy Knoxy,” further fueling some her fame and notoriety.

The court, astatine the time, did nevertheless uphold her condemnation for slandering Lumumba, who spent 2 weeks down bars earlier authorities yet confirmed his alibi.

Knox was sentenced to 3 years already served for falsely implicating him, but she launched an entreaty successful 2019. Her ineligible squad specifically cited a ruling from the aforesaid twelvemonth by the European Court of Human Rights, which concluded Knox’s rights to a lawyer and an interpreter were violated during her archetypal interrogations with Italian authorities.

An appeals tribunal successful Florence last twelvemonth reconvicted Knox, who testified that she pointed the digit astatine Lumumba — the proprietor of a barroom wherever she’d worked part-time — due to the fact that of aggravated constabulary pressure. She vowed astatine the clip to again entreaty the ruling successful beforehand of Italy’s apical court.

“What truly gets maine is that this lesser complaint was what the full execution proceedings fell backmost on,” Knox said in a bid of societal media posts Wednesday. “My interrogation, which Italy’s ain courts deemed to beryllium illegal, derailed everything. … The constabulary were ne'er held accountable for the crimes they committed against maine down closed doors.”

Amanda Knox lawyers Luca Luparia Donati, left, and Carlo Dalla Vedova get astatine the archetypal conception of the Supreme Court successful Rome, successful Rome, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Knox’s lawyers told Reuters she did not travel to Italy for the ineligible proceedings, opting alternatively to enactment location with family.

While Knox had not publically commented connected the court’s verdict arsenic of Thursday afternoon, her attorneys said they were “incredulous” astatine the determination to uphold her slander conviction.

“This is wholly unexpected successful our eyes, and wholly unjust for Amanda,” lawyer Dalla Vedova told reporters successful the courthouse.

Amanda Knox arrives with her hubby Christopher Robinson astatine the courthouse successful Florence, Italy, connected June 5, 2024 earlier a proceeding successful a slander case, related to her jailing and aboriginal acquittal for the execution of her British roommate successful 2007. (Photo by TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images)

Reached by telephone, Lumumba said helium was satisfied with the ruling.

“Amanda was wrong,” helium told The Associated Press. “This verdict has to travel her for the remainder of her life.”

Rudy Guede

Pier Paolo Cito/AP

Rudy Hermann Guede from the Ivory coast, center, is escorted by Italian penitentiary constabulary officers arsenic helium leaves Perugia’s tribunal aft a hearing, cardinal Italy connected Friday, Sept. 26, 2008.

Rudy Guede, an migrant from the Ivory Coast, was convicted of Kercher’s sidesplitting during a abstracted proceedings and sentenced successful 2008 to 16 years down bars. In December 2020, an Italian tribunal ruled helium could implicit his word with assemblage service. He was released from situation successful 2021 for bully behavior.