By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
In what hopefully will become the conclusion of an oppressive years long ordeal, Italy’s highest court, the Court of Cassation, overturned the murder convictions against Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito.
The news came as somewhat a surprise considering the zeal at which the prosecution fought to ensure the defendants be imprisoned for over two decades. The subsequent court drama and media circuses made it seem an almost foregone conclusion her fate would ultimately rest upon an extradition hearing within the purview of American courts.
We discussed in length the various issues in the murder of Meredith Kercher in Perugia, Italy. (HERE HERE HERE HERE HERE and HERE)
Ahead of the Friday Verdict, Knox’s lawyers said there were errors of “colossal proportions” in the guilty verdicts which were ruled for the second time last January.
After the verdict Knox spoke to reporters outside the Seattle home of her mother, Edda Mellas. She was accompanied by her mother and her fiancé, Colin Sutherland.
She stated “Right now I’m still absorbing what all this means and what comes to mind is my gratitude for the life that’s been given to me,” stating further that she was thankful “for the justice I’ve received and for the support I’ve had from everyone -from my family, from my friends, to strangers … I’m so grateful to have my life back.”
Responding to a question about what she would like to say to the Kercher Family, she stated “Meredith was my friend. She deserved so much in this life. I’m the lucky one.”
Co-defendant Rudy Guede’s conviction remains and he continues his incarceration.
Of course, the Italian legal system rescued itself from a potentially embarrassing situation if it ruled against Knox and had a U.S. District Court refuse extradition, declaring that Italy made Colossal Constitutional Errors and violated the civil rights of Amanda Knox.
By Darren Smith
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The views expressed in this posting are the author’s alone and not those of the blog, the host, or other weekend bloggers. As an open forum, weekend bloggers post independently without pre-approval or review. Content and any displays or art are solely their decision and responsibility.
Paul
By the way, there is such a palpable change in discourse when exchanging views with you and the others on this site today. Everyone should be commended for being capable of discussing varying points of view without the personal attacks that have become so pervasive on this blog.
What does my GUT tell me? It tells me to recognize which individuals must be sleeping in on this beautiful Saturday morning. The absence is refreshing.
factchecker – since I spent too much time on this blog, I can tell you exactly who is missing. Whether they slept in, are doing honey-dos, are recreating, whatever, I know who is active and who is inactive. It is like being at the office and know who is late or missing. A gut feeling would be they were in an automobile accident.
Paul
Actually, yes, I tend to have a gut feeling about how various judges, with whom I am in contact, need to be addressed. Some are sticklers for formality, where one who fails to use the proper decorum will do so at his/her peril. Others are much more easy going, where a smile and a little levity are appreciated. My GUT guides me in my approach to these varied characters, including the multitude of prosecutors, and my PERCEPTION, as to how they will respond in the most favorable way for my client, leads me. I won’t deny it. This is not restricted to one practicing law. Our gut instincts are a part of human nature, and our decisions, with regard to tackling any situation, are impacted. We may not always be conscious of it, but it is there.
Why do you think that it is so important as to how a defendant is dressed or groomed in the courtroom? Does it change the facts of the case? What about behavior, while seated in front of jurors? Again, it is just one more tool, used by those evaluating the defendant, to form a judgment. Wishing that it weren’t the case doesn’t change it. We all do this at some level, even if it is subconscious.
That was a joke for Captain Literal and the humor impaired.
Paul
She’s a free spirit? Do free spirits do cartwheels down the hallways of police stations AFTER being informed of the brutal and gruesome murder of a roommate, while waiting to be interviewed by police? Her reason for that? She claimed that she was bored and needed to stretch. Do free spirits laugh, giggle and kiss, while shopping for new clothing, AFTER being informed of a roommate’s horrifying death?
We are not machines. All information, to which we are privy, aids in forming the basis for our conclusions. Right or wrong, it’s just the way that it is. Are the above referenced acts dispositive of guilt here? No, but, they do come into play in one’s assessment of the case in its entirety. One’s demeanor has an impact.
If she is truly innocent, I have nothing but pity for her and for her family, for enduring what must have been years of pain and frustration battling to clear her name. Just saying that her strange and peculiar behavior did not help her case.
factchecker – there is a rather famous video of Bill Clinton laughing on his way to a funeral of a good friend. When he realizes that the cameras are pointed at him he becomes very somber. He was roundly criticized for this by many on the right. Personally, I thought it was a very human response to what was going on. I thought it was hypocritical to suddenly quit laughing and pretend to be sad.
I think she is guilty. I heard she converted and became a Muslim before the muder.
Trooper york – you owe me a new keyboard. 🙂
An example.
I knew a woman once who laughed and laughed when she was told she had terminal cancer. It was very odd.
Human behavior under stress is at times inscrutable.
Having watched very little of this matter, I cannot comment on her behaviors, but only mention that some people who are entirely innocent do the oddest things when they are under suspicion of some crime.
As if they were their own enemy.
Sociopaths, in contrast, are often very convincing.
It’s possible she is an immature fool, a shallow free spirit, who until then had untrammeled trust that her innocence alone was all that was required of her.
I know such young people.
The world can eat them alive.
It’s also possible she had something to do with this, but the critiques of the case against her are devastating, making the Italian courts out to be deviants and fools.
Factchecker, I’ve heard people reference the cartwheels before and yet that is exactly what my niece would do under those circumstances. She is physically very active and gets antsy. She lets that out by doing ballet stretches, leaps if there is room, cartwheels and similar physical movements. The physical activity has nothing to do with her emotional state–they just reflect a physical need for her muscles to move.
Paul
Criminal defense attorneys are notoriously nervous and hesitant about putting their clients up on the stand. Many factors come into play, but one of them is HOW the defendant will come across to a jury, HOW they will be PERCEIVED. This is separate and distinct from the actual evidence. Of course, prior bad acts can be questioned, but I’m not referring to that. I’m trying to shed a light on what you find so strange in your local detective: his ability to form a reaction based upon a gut reaction. We all do it. Hopefully, it is not the ONLY method used to decide one’s guilt or innocence, but it is definitely used. Behavior, inconsistent what is considered normal, under the circumstances, raises a red flag, as it should.
factchecker – does your ‘gut’ tell you the judge will rule for or against you? Does your gut tell you the barista will smile when they give you your coffee? I am the type of person who drive a polygraph examiner nuts. When I took one for a job, one time, the examiner swore I was screwing with him. I wasn’t, I answered honestly each time. However, he failed to ask a preparatory question which would have stopped the exam before it started and saved him a lot of frustration.
As for the long retired and probably deceased detective, he thought he could tell by looking at a person’s breathing patterns in their stomach. By watching how the person was breathing he could tell how if the person was guilty or not.
Paul
I’m not an old detective, just an old attorney. I know that her innocence or guilt is not dependent upon my gut instincts. I couldn’t have made that more clear in my previous comment. For whatever it’s worth, something strikes me as extremely odd about these two. Maybe it was Amanda doing cartwheels in the police station, after hearing of the brutal murder and while waiting to be interviewed. Maybe it was the witness reports of Amanda and her boyfriend giggling and laughing while shopping directly after the murder. Call me crazy. Can’t put my finger on it. I’ve read the news reports over the years, seen the film clips, and viewed the various 48 Hours episodes covering this case. I don’t claim to be an expert. Not by a long shot.
As unreliable as polygraphs may be, it would STILL be quite interesting to see what BOTH of their tests would reveal. Not that it will change anything. This case is over and done. Call me whatever, but the results of an UNRELIABLE polygraph, given to both of these defendants, would probably come out the same. Any guesses about what that would be?
factchecker – when you listen to Amanda Knox being interviewed after the first acquittal, you see that she is a ‘free spirit.’ When I first moved to Arizona, my mother’s office mate was charged with murder and convicted. Her attorney told her not to react to anything said on the stand or by anyone else in the courtroom. Interviews with the jury found they decided she was a cold-blooded murderess because she was not reacting in a normal fashion. The first verdict was overturned on appeal. She was retried and found not guilty. In the 2nd trial she acted like a normal person. Jury was out less than an hour.
As far as the Knox case is concerned, I’m with Nick on this. This chic and her boyfriend give off a very bad vibe. Please, before all of you wingnuts on here get your panties into a twist, it’s just my perception of her and her former boyfriend. I know, please no lectures, that my perception does make her guilty of murder. So, please, spare me the diatribes about justice. Just my gut instinct that something about her and this guy is askew.
Please, no lessons in admissibility, but what I wouldn’t give to see the results of a polygraph performed on both of them. Gut instinct, ok? Both would fail spectacularly.
factchecker – I remember an old detective in the area who could ‘tell’ if some one was guilty just by looking at them. You remind me of him.
factchecker – btw polygraphs are unreliable which is why they cannot be used in court.
Barkindog
Not that it makes much of a difference to you, but contrary to what you wrote, the municipal court judge in Jennings, Missouri, is white, not black. Well, at least he was the last time that I appeared before him. The only color that makes any difference in these municipal courts is the color GREEN. The appointment of a new judge in Ferguson is a joke, since he will do exactly the same as the prior judge. The savages needed blood, so to appease them, the prior judge resigned and this guy was appointed. To date, I can tell you that there are no new substantive changes in court policy in the City of Ferguson, just the much demanded change of faces.
I would agree that Amanda Knox is her own worst enemy, however that does not mean she is guilty of murder.
I never followed the trial or the facts. Strictly gut. This girl is bad. Guilty, I have no idea. But, she’s bad news. To all dudes, no matter how good looking she is, stay away.
Steve, excellent point.
Leviathan crushes without mercy.
Think about the years and and the money lost to get an acquittal. (I have no idea what the Knoxs’ spent to protect their daughter, but I suspect that the parents’ retirement has been adversely affected.)
It is similar in the U.S. – if you fall into the clutches of an aggressive D.A., you can spend your family’s entire savings defending yourself.
I don’t have statistics, but I suspect that many people plead guilty just because they don’t have the resources to fight the government.
I know that if I were accused – even if I were innocent – I would have to think long and hard before destroying my family’s retirement/well being to prove that innocence.
Italy seems never to have risen from the ashes of the Roman Empire, which -as I understand- had serious protections for property and contracts, but let everything else fall to the whim of local leaders.
Even murder.
This case apparently had a bit of madness attached to it as well, not unlike the ‘Satanic ritual abuse’ claims in the US in the 1980s.
I read a book, which I do not remember the title, about a real murder investigation in Italy. You really, really do not want to be accused of murder in Italy.
I applaud the verdict of the court. After reading the verdict of the higher court the first time there was little to rest a case on. Glad they got it right the second time, too.
Reblogged this on Oyia Brown.
If it were not for the ruling of the appellate court here I would advise people that Italy is a pirate territory and to only fly over if you must and flush if you can. I will revise that somewhat. If you are of Italian ancestary then you will now understand why grandpa moved here. Or grandma. If you have ever visited there you can probably understand how the trial court acted like a trial court in Turkey. A positive thing about Italy is the Mafia. The Mafia keeps people from cheating each other too much and allows people to obtain justice with their own hands. Relying on a court system in America is unreliable if you get pulled over for a bad taillight in Jennings, Mo. There is a black judge there who tells the offenders: Bring me my money! The offenders can be of any race or creed. It is not about race. It is about thievery. Next door in Ferguson there is a white judge who extorts money out of those who get pulled into court for a parking violation. The judge gets blamed for being a racist. So you see America is like Europe. It is all about borders. There is a border between France and Italy and one between Ferguson and Jennings. There is a high court in Missouri which kicked out the Feguson judge and appointed an appellate judge to hear the parking cases and other, and now in Italy they have a high court which did right by Knox College. Err, Amanda Knox. John Podesta went to Knox College. So if Hillary takes over you will have that college to think about. John will be running some things for Hillary. Nuff said. Go Siwash!