Knox deserves 'maximum penalty,' court told
Source: Agencies |
October 1, 2011, Saturday
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AMANDA Knox killed her British roommate "for no reason" and the American student and her former boyfriend should face the maximum penalty for their crime, her appeal trial was told yesterday.
Prosecutors urged the court to uphold Knox's sentence for murder and said the 24-year-old would flee Italy if freed.
Knox, jailed for 26 years, and her Italian ex-boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, are fighting their convictions for the murder of Briton Meredith Kercher in 2007. A verdict is due on Monday.
Knox and Sollecito should be kept behind bars for life, prosecutors said, and they reminded the jury of the gruesome nature of the crime. Kercher's body was found with more than 40 wounds and her throat slit.
"They were young but they killed for no reason," said prosecutor Manuela Comodi. "For this they should be given the maximum sentence, which luckily in Italy is not the death sentence."
If the guilty verdicts are overturned, both would be freed immediately. Speculation has been rife that Knox would be whisked home to the United States if she is freed from the Umbrian prison where she has been held for nearly four years.
Any subsequent appeal by prosecutors or any re-trial might therefore take place in Knox's absence.
"We know that if the verdict is overturned, there will be an immediate escape overseas," prosecutor Giuliano Mignini told the court in rebuttals after closing arguments.
Kercher was on a year-long exchange program in Perugia studying Italian, when she was murdered.
Her family's lawyer, Francesco Maresca, has described her as sunny young woman "full of life" who was killed during a brutal assault during which the 21-year-old was held down by her assailants.
Knox and Sollecito, who was jailed for 25 years, say they spent the night of the crime in the Italian's apartment watching a movie, smoking pot and having sex.
Sollecito's father said his son was "very scared. But he is hopeful of the right verdict."
Rudy Guede, an Ivorian drifter, is also serving time for taking part in Kercher's murder. He has maintained his innocence.
Prosecutors urged the court to uphold Knox's sentence for murder and said the 24-year-old would flee Italy if freed.
Knox, jailed for 26 years, and her Italian ex-boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, are fighting their convictions for the murder of Briton Meredith Kercher in 2007. A verdict is due on Monday.
Knox and Sollecito should be kept behind bars for life, prosecutors said, and they reminded the jury of the gruesome nature of the crime. Kercher's body was found with more than 40 wounds and her throat slit.
"They were young but they killed for no reason," said prosecutor Manuela Comodi. "For this they should be given the maximum sentence, which luckily in Italy is not the death sentence."
If the guilty verdicts are overturned, both would be freed immediately. Speculation has been rife that Knox would be whisked home to the United States if she is freed from the Umbrian prison where she has been held for nearly four years.
Any subsequent appeal by prosecutors or any re-trial might therefore take place in Knox's absence.
"We know that if the verdict is overturned, there will be an immediate escape overseas," prosecutor Giuliano Mignini told the court in rebuttals after closing arguments.
Kercher was on a year-long exchange program in Perugia studying Italian, when she was murdered.
Her family's lawyer, Francesco Maresca, has described her as sunny young woman "full of life" who was killed during a brutal assault during which the 21-year-old was held down by her assailants.
Knox and Sollecito, who was jailed for 25 years, say they spent the night of the crime in the Italian's apartment watching a movie, smoking pot and having sex.
Sollecito's father said his son was "very scared. But he is hopeful of the right verdict."
Rudy Guede, an Ivorian drifter, is also serving time for taking part in Kercher's murder. He has maintained his innocence.
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