Amanda Knox Appeal: Petitions, Extradition, Double Jeopardy, and Who Hit the Panic Button

February 4, 2014

It seems the recent guilty verdict by the Italian court made more than a few people panic. This was compounded by the news stories circulating about how Amanda would be extradited to Italy. So called experts and international lawyers were saying how Knox was now in a very bad position. And I was buying into this nonsense also.

Now that the smoke is clearing a bit, and after doing a little research on extradition and also on petitions, I think some people including myself jumped the gun on this. First I want to clear a few things up. About the petition I originally mentioned a few days ago- I was referring to a 'long term' petition. I found out after writing that post that 2 petitions were started the day before my post at the white house site- We the People.
This type of petition has a 30 day time limit with a threshold of 100,000 signatures required to get a response from the White House. Now I don't know who started these petitions at the government site, but I'm sure their heart is in the right place. But the problem with these type of petitions is the time limit- 30 days- it actually ends on March 1, 2014. Even if these petitions made the required threshold for White House response- all the government would say is: Hey, Italy did not ask for us to extradite Amanda Knox. And that's all they would have to say about that.

If the Italian Supreme Court upholds the guilty verdict they may ask for Knox to be extradited. There are also reasons they may not ask. So these current white house petitions are not going to block an extradition that is not even on the table. On the other hand- these petitions are certainly not harming anything either. It should be pointed out however that the majority of Knox supporters will probably not sign a petition where there is no present threat to Amanda. Without realizing they were quick 30 day petitions I sign them myself. No harm done, and I'm not sorry I did. It does show support for the cause, but other than showing support they have no practical value. This type of petition will have value if Italy ever asks the U S to turn over Amanda Knox.

Now about extradition. A few news/online blogs are stating that the U S would have to turn over Knox if Italy requested it. THAT IS NOT CORRECT.
The U S does not HAVE to extradite Knox and common sense dictates that they probably will not. Just because there is a treaty between the U S and Italy does not mean we hand over people blindly. There are clauses in most treaties- and one of the most common is: that 'probable cause to believe' that the person asked for committed the offense. These trials in Italy against Knox and Sollecito have been internationally condemned by a great many people including law makers and forensic scientists. Also, the guilty 26 years....not guilty you can go..........guilty 28.5 years verdicts do not set well with the American people or the U S Constitution. Add to this the facts that Knox had no legal rep, was assulted during interrogation, and was hoodwinked into making false statements- and I think the U S has a dozen reasons to say NO to Italy if they ever come calling. To put it simply- this is no average case where the U S would feel compelled to comply with extradition. This case is an exception to the rule and that's putting it mildly.

As far as double jeopardy (to be tried more than once/ sentenced more than once for the same crime) in this country it is forbidden by the U S Constitution. But the trials were held in Italy under Italian law, so it is not as simple as it sounds. Even the law experts are divided as to whether this constitutes double jeopardy. Whether the State Dept thinks so or not is not the last resort to saving Amanda from extradition. This case was tainted from the very beginning- and that's not a secret. I can not see the Secretary of State handing over an obviously innocent person to be jailed overseas simply because there is a treaty. Bottom line is- this case does not meet the conditions necessary for the U S to approve extradition.

As for that panic button- I think I hit it myself after I heard the recent verdict- I'm better now.

Amanda Knox Appeal: New Petition Started To Protect Amanda Knox

February 2, 2014

The U S Government is being petitioned to block the possible extradition of Amanda Knox to Italy. It is believed that if the new guilty verdict is upheld by the Italian Supreme Court a formal request from Italy asking the U S to turn over Amanda Knox will be forthcoming. To block the extradition of Knox to Italy a petition has been started at the White House/gov petition site asking the Obama administration/U S State Dept. not to extradite Amanda Knox.

The petition which was started a couple days ago, has about 1,000 signatures so far, but many more people are needed to sign the petition in order to make a favorable impression on the White House. Most people are not yet aware there is a petition to protect Amanda so people need to spread the word around. The petition can be signed online at the White House.gov /We the People page. I will provide a link to click on which will take you directly to the Amanda Knox Petition page.

Now I want to take a minute to tell you how you go about signing the petition. It's really fast and easy. When you get to the page. You will see the others who signed but not by name- only initials are visible. The first thing you do is click on the register/account button and you type in your name and e-mail address, and the zip code is optional (if you don't want your city and state known). You will get an e-mail to confirm your address and a link to click on which will bring you back to the wh.gov site. Then you just click on the 'sign the petition' button. That's all there is to it. It's really fast. You can either click on the link I provided below or google the white house.gov site and then scroll through to find the Amanda Knox petition. The link I provide below however will bring you right to the petition page. Here is the link:

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/protect-amanda-knox-extradition/3vdzDmLN

Signing this petition is the most important thing you can do for Amanda Knox. If you believe that Amanda has been unjustly convicted of this crime, don't just get mad, do something about it- sign the petition that shows the White House that Amanda does not stand alone. Get your family and friends to sign the petition also if they feel the need to stop this injustice. I am not certain when the petition ends but it has a date on it of March 1, 2014 and seems to need 99,000 signatures by then. In the 2 days it has been up there are about 1,000 people who have signed but many more are needed. It stands to reason that the more people who sign, the more the White House will pay attention to this important issue. I signed it last night and I feel better already : ) Here is the link again:

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/protect-amanda-knox-extradition/3vdzDmLN

UPDATE: There are 2 petitions for Amanda Knox at the same place but different pages- you might as well sign both. This other petition actually has more signatures than the one above. Here is the link for the other petition against extradition:

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/dont-extradite-amanda-knox-double-jeopardy/bfscL0yK