Amanda Knox and Slander In Italy

Slander huh? I wasn't going to go there. I was going to leave it to other people- blogs, newspapers, TV reporters, etc... It wasn't that I didn't have anything to say, I just figured it was probably best if I didn't say it. You know, kind of hold my tongue and wait for the outcome. Then I realized that way too many people are holding their tongues as concerns Amanda Knox- people in positions of power- People who could make a difference. Well that sure isn't me- all I can do is sound off about things. I don't have to worry about if it's politically correct, or if the prosecutor's office in Perugia is getting bent out of shape because someone is voicing their opinion on the matter.

I kind of have a feeling though that the powers that be in the U S are paying attention to the Amanda Knox situation. Just being quiet and waiting for the outcome of things. It is completely understandable that Hilary Clinton did nothing as concerns Amanda's conviction last December. What could she do? Butting into a murder conviction that was handed down in another country is not 'politically correct'. Not unless the conviction was so plainly biased that even the average person on the street is complaining about it- and the average person in this instance, knows very little about Amanda's plight. I do have to give credit though to some people who did defend the principle- politically correct or not, and that would be a certain judge and junior senator from the state of Washington.

However, this is not a murder conviction this time. This is a case of slander that Amanda is charged with. Something where in the U S the average person is free of such nonsense. People are free to grumble about the police and politicians in America- we do it all the time. And people are free to say what they want in their own defense in court without fear that the local prosecutor will file criminal charges and the police try and sue you for money.

All because Amanda actually had the 'nerve' to say the Perugia police were getting aggressive with her- including a couple cuffs on the back of the head. And she actually had the 'nerve' to say this in court in her own defense. She must have thought she was back home in the land of the free, without realizing that in Italy one does not talk against the police (does it actually warn you of this in travel guides?).

So this Friday, October 1st, Amanda goes to court for slander, and faces a judge that has dealt harshly with her in the past- one Claudia Matteini. Despite Amanda's defense objections to this judge sitting in on the case- she refused to step aside and she was confirmed by a higher court to be qualified. So I guess we can rest assured that there will be no bias from Judge Matteini.

And it keeps getting better- Amanda's parents are also charged and have a court date for October 15th. It appears that they repeated what Amanda had told them about that night at the police station to a British reporter and Mignini charged them also. No wonder they want to make a movie out of the Amanda Knox case- it beat's the hell out of fiction.

As surreal as all this appears I still can not imagine, how exactly does one lose a case like this in court. That night in question was never taped by the police in breech of Italian law, so how would the police prove Amanda was lying (as they contend) and how would Amanda prove that she was telling the truth? Does it in fact come down to who the judge chooses to believe? Does she take the word of a dozen cops or does she find Amanda is being truthful? As concerns Amanda it seems there is never much evidence against her- yet evidence has never played much of a part in finding her guilty. Is this time going to be any different? I can only hope that if things go badly for Amanda that the powers that be in this country are watching, and are prepared to speak out and defend the principle.