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Kercher suspect's parents speak out

Updated on 15 September 2008

Source ITN

The parents of an American woman accused of murdering a British student in Italy have hit out at the media's portrayal of their daughter.

Amanda Knox is one of three suspects being held over the murder of Leeds University student Meredith Kercher, 21, in the central Italian town of Perugia last November.

The parents of Knox, nicknamed 'Foxy Knoxy' by sections of the media, spoke to ITV1's Tonight programme to defend their daughter ahead of her court appearance scheduled for Tuesday.

Knox, 21, from Seattle, is due to appear at a pre-trial hearing alongside her former Italian boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito, 24, and Ivory Coast citizen Hermann Guede, 21. They deny deny sexually assaulting and murdering the student from Coulsdon, Surrey.

Cleared suspect Diya "Patrick" Lumumba is also expected to be in court. He is suing Knox for falsely implicating him in Miss Kercher's murder.

Miss Kercher was found semi-naked and with her throat slit at the home she shared with Knox and others in Perugia in November last year.

Knox's mother Edda Mellas, said she is unhappy with the way her daughter has been portrayed, explaining: "And what has been done to her reputation, I mean it's just ... yeah we want her home first of all.

"Everything I read or see on TV, I no longer believe because I know what they did to Amanda and what they have said in print, media - all kinds of media have said about her is totally false, so you wonder how much out there is really true."

Mr Knox said he felt sympathy for the Kercher family. "We feel heartbreak for them. I mean it's one in which you know they get a telephone call that's the worse one you could ever have. We got a different one," he said.

Miss Kercher's parents, John and Arline, and sister Stephanie also spoke out as they arrived in Perugia for the trial.

In a statement read by Stephanie, the family said: "Each time we arrive in Perugia, we wish we were here for a different reason. It is so easy to understand why Meredith loved this city.

"We wish she had had more time here before being brutally taken from us. Mez was such a significant part of so many lives. Mez was such a genuine person that when we think of her now and when we see her friends we don't need to say anything, we just need to smile.

"We are pleased we have reached a new phase in the process, hoping that justice will soon be done for Meredith."

© Independent Television News Limited 2008. All rights reserved.

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