Amanda Knox Case Latest News: Engagement to Colin Sutherland Ahead of Murder Retrial in Italy
Amanda Knox's Valentine's Day engagement announcement to musician Colin Sutherland just before her murder retrial in Italy has been received with mixed reactions.
International exchange student Amanda Knox, who gained notoriety after her conviction for the murder of her roommate Meredith Kercher eight years ago, recently announced her engagement to rock band member, Colin Sutherland last Feb. 14.
Knox and her then boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito were convicted and sentenced to 25 years in prison in Italy for the murder of her roommate, Meredith Kercher in 2007. After four years in prison, both were acquitted in 2011 after an appeal judge reversed the decision based on insufficient evidence.
However, the appeals court decision was overturned and another one upholding the conviction arrived near the end of January this year, following evidence delivered by Italian prosecutors pointing towards Knox's more solid involvement in Kercher's death. Knox, who has since returned to the U.S. to rebuild her life in Seattle after her acquittal, has filed an appeal with the Supreme Court of Italy.
Sutherland, 28, Knox's long-time friend from middle school, corresponded with her during her time in prison, and reconnected with her after he moved from New York to Seattle.
Adding to the circus-like atmosphere surrounding the retrial, a film on Amanda Knox's real-life story is scheduled to be released a day after the retrial commences. "The Face of an Angel," a Michael Winterbottom-helmed psychological thriller, stars Kate Beckinsale, Daniel Brül, and Cara Delevigne, and was largely based on the book "Angel Face," written by journalist Barbie Latza Nadeau chronicling the account of Knox's murder trials in Italy.