Amanda Knox said Friday that she would “never willingly go back” to Italy, after the Italian justice system reversed their decision of acquittal in her murder retrial and sentenced Knox to serve 28 ½ years for murder of her English roommate Meredith Kercher.
In an exclusive interview with Robin Roberts, Knox told Good Morning America, news of the verdict “really has hit me like a train.”
Knox, who returned to Seattle after her 2009 acquittal of the murder of Kercher, refused to return to Italy for the retrial. An appeals court found Knox and her ex-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito, guilty of murder in Knox’s absence.
Sollecito remained in Italy during the retrial. After the guilty verdict was announced, officials later found him in a hotel near the Italian border with Austria and Slovenia in a search to seize his travel documents. Sollecito says he was not attempting to leave the country.
“I am frightened and saddened by this unjust verdict. Having been found innocent before, I expected better from the Italian justice system,” an emotional Knox said.
The bizarre trial has even more twists that remain to be seen. Knox has up to 90 days after the judge’s official ruling to appeal the verdict to the Italian Supreme Court. Another key question – Will Knox face extradition to Italy to serve her 28 1/2-year sentence?
“I will never go willingly back to the place where … I’m going to fight this to the very end. It’s not right and it’s not fair,” Knox said.
Her attorney, Ted Simon, says it was too early to talk about extradition since there is still an appeals process to go through, which will probably last another year.
Kercher’s family may have to wait until spring 2015 to see a resolution to the case.
“The best we can hope for is finally bringing this whole case to a conclusion, having a conviction, and everyone can move on with their lives,” Lyle Kercher, Meredith’s brother, said.
They stated they expect to see Italian authorities make an extradition request to the United States so that Knox serves her sentence in Italy.
[Photo Credit: ABC News]