For the past four years, we all have heard various updates about the Amanda Knox case in Perugia, Italy. This past Tuesday she was released from the Italian prison following a jury overturning her conviction of murder. This was a long legal battle between an American citizen and an Italian court. But how did her conviction get overturned? Who was the lawyer heading the battle?
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Photo courtesy of Reuters Pictures Simon speaks at a press conference following Knox's return to the U.S. |
This very experienced lawyer worked for Amanda Knox in Italy to get her conviction overturned based on the issue that the DNA was not properly handled in the original investigation. He also attempted to rid the media propaganda of the view that Knox is a “devil.” Her family has incurred over a million dollars in legal fees based on the work at Theodore Simon and his team did, which is an incredibly large bill.
On talks of appeal, Simon has stated that Italy does not have the same sweeping review that Supreme Courts in the United States does. While the Italian prosecution has stated that they will challenge the newest verdict, the defense does not believe that a challenge will stand. Only time will tell if this is the end of the Amanda Knox saga. However, Simon has told the media that the defense feels legally strong on this overturn and believes it will hold.
Jennifer Dickquist is currently a 2L at Duquense University. She is a research assistant at the Duquesne Center for Legal Information and a part of the Bill of Rights Clinic. Jennifer earned her undergraduate degree at LeMoyne College in Syracuse, N.Y. With a major in political science. She will graduate from Duquesne Law School in 2013 and can be researched at dickquistj@duq.edu.
