Amanda Knox Appeals Trial: Judge Denies New DNA Evidence
An Italian court on Wednesday rejected a prosecutor’s request for new testing of DNA evidence in the Amanda Knox appeals trial. The denial is a positive development for Knox who is seeking to have her 26-year sentence overturned.
Judge Claudio Pratillo Hellman also denied the prosecution’s request to introduce new records about the original DNA testing. The court’s decision is a blow to the prosecution, which sought to produce new evidence that contradicts a recent review of evidence collected during the original investigation.
The prosecution also asked to put an incarcerated mobster back on the witness stand. Luciano Aviello previously testified that his fugitive brother killed Kercher during a failed burglary. After the first trial, Aviello wanted to retract his statement and was questioned in July in prison by Prosecutor Manuela Comodi.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
Judge Hellman allowed transcriptions of the questioning but decided Aviello will not testify.
In the first trial, prosecutors argued that a kitchen knife considered the murder weapon, contained DNA from both Knox and Kercher. They also maintained that the DNA of Raffaele Sollecito, Knox’s co-defendant, was on Kercher’s bra clasp and placed him at the scene.
On Tuesday, a panel of experts criticized the methods of a forensic police expert who investigated the murder of Meredith Kercher. The court-appointed experts said the forensic expert’s methods were flawed and that an independent review showed the evidence was unreliable and possibly contaminated.
The prosecution’s case hinges on conclusive DNA evidence that links Knox and Sollecito to the 2007 killing. Francesco Maresca, an attorney for the Kercher family, said the rulings were not a defeat.
Knox’s father, Curt, told CNN that after the rulings he was optimistic his daughter would come home soon. He is pleased with the court’s decision saying, “It shows the judge and the jury believed in what the independent experts have brought back to them.”
The hearing was adjourned until Sept. 23 when closing arguments will begin. A verdict is expected by the end of Sept., based on the timetable the judge released on Wednesday.
In 2007, Knox and Sollecito were found guilty of murdering Kercher. The 21-year-old’s semi-naked body was found in the house she shared with Knox.
Knox was sentenced to 26 years and Sollecito was ordered to serve 25 years in prison. A third defendant, Rudy Guede, was also convicted in a separate trial for participating in the murder and is serving a 16-year sentence.
