The Murder of Meredith Kercher by Gary C. King Read Free Book Online Page A

would that not be the same as rape? Many people reading the various accounts of the case now wondered about the legal definition of rape, but considering that there was nothing of evidentiary value that conclusively showed that Meredith had been raped had little choice but to accept the Italian authorities’ theory about what had happened that night. People also believed the assertion made by the police that Meredith knew her assailants, because of the lack of forced entry to the house.
    Meanwhile, Meredith’s parents, along with her sister, who had been in Perugia to identify Meredith’s body and to be brought up to date with what was happening regarding the investigation, had to leave to return to London on Wednesday, November 7. Prior to leaving, however, John Kercher, in a very poignant gesture on the family’s behalf, left a note on the steps of Perugia’s cathedral, facing the city’s square, which read: ‘Love you forever, Meredith. All my love, Dad. Xxxx.’

C HAPTER 6
    I t was not long before the nickname ‘Foxy Knoxy’ – one that came from her skills on the football pitch – was taken from Amanda Knox’s own MySpace page, and appeared in media reports of Amanda’s involvement in the Meredith Kercher murder case. And within a day or two of her arrest, images from the social networking MySpace page also began appearing all over the Internet, depicting her as a heartless villain with a voracious sexual appetite. But it did not end merely with portraying Amanda as a ‘man-eater’. It seemed that within hours of the dissemination of news about her MySpace site, a story, also found on her page, about two brothers conversing about the drugging and rape of a female, began finding its way around the Internet. Not helping matters for Amanda – who was being described as a wholesome, warm and adventurous person by her acquaintances, friends, andrelatives – was the way the Italian press and British tabloids jumped on the bandwagon that was rolling out a portrayal of her as the ‘Dark Lady of Seattle’ or ‘ La luciferina ’, loosely translated as an angel-faced devil. To top it all off, such a disparaging portrayal of the young woman with icy blue eyes – whether true or false – was only just beginning.
    Born on July 9, 1987, in Seattle, Washington, Amanda Knox grew up in the typically quiet west side working-class area that is situated along picturesque Puget Sound. Characterized as a bright student in high school, Amanda won a partial scholarship to the Seattle Preparatory School, an esteemed and prestigious private school that was affiliated with Seattle University. The school was a long commute from her home, but she made the trip five days a week with excellent attendance, only rarely missing a day. Although homework assignments were often extensive, she always seemed to find the time to participate in soccer, one of her favourite sports, and drama. She also enjoyed rock climbing, and some would say later that the sport had given her much strength in her hands and fingers – the type of strength needed, for instance, to hold someone down during a violent struggle.
    Following graduation from high school, Amanda was readily accepted at the University of Washington, also in Seattle, where she studied German, Japanese, Italian and creative writing. It was later said that the‘dark’ short story about the drugging and rape of a young woman that she had placed on her MySpace page had been written in one of her university creative writing classes. The story involved two brothers, Kyle and Edgar, and Kyle says at one point: ‘A thing you have to know about chicks is that they don’t know what they want.’ Kyle winked his eye . ‘You have to show it to them. Trust me.’ He cocked his eyebrows up and one side of his mouth rose into a grin . ‘I think we both know hard A is hardly a drug.’
    When she had the opportunity to study in Italy for a year, Amanda jumped at it. She left for Europe in late