Amanda Knox Was Railroaded, Expert Says

(CBS)  Ever since Seattle student Amanda Knox was convicted in Italy last December of murdering her roommate, the case has been analyzed by crime and legal experts in the U.S. Some believe Knox, now 23, was a victim of a flawed investigation and Italian justice system.

Steve Moore, a retired FBI agent, is now one of those investigators.

Pictures: Murder In Italy
Pictures: Amanda Knox: Case Timeline
Pictures: Verdict in Italy

For nearly three years, Amanda Knox has been in an Italian prison. She's currently appealing her conviction for the November 2007 murder of her roommate, 21-year-old Meredith Kercher.

Knox was sentenced to 26 years in prison. Her former boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, who was also convicted, received 25 years. Prosecutors say the two slit Kercher's throat after she refused to take part in a sexual game.

The Knox family says the prosecution had no physical evidence linking Amanda's to the crime scene. Knox claims that after hours of badgering by police, she was coerced into giving a confession.

Moore followed the Amanda Knox trial and had no doubt in his mind that she was guilty. That was until his wife, watching a CBS News "48 Hours Mystery" late last year on the Knox case, became convinced that she was innocent. Moore investigated trial transcripts, examined police and autopsy reports and analyzed videotape of police gathering evidence at the crime scene.

But what he didn't see was any evidence for the prosecution's theory.

Moore said on "The Early Show" Thursday, "I started to wonder what was going on. There was no evidence that would support her conviction. I started looking and looking. The more I looked, the more concerned I got until I realized there wasn't anything there."

In fact, Moore says there is a physical impossibility that Knox or her then-boyfriend were at the crime scene.

He explained, "When a person dies from losing blood, you lose about two liters of blood. This was a very small room. Imagine just throwing two liters of blood all over the floor of this room. Very small room. If three people were in there, there would be footprints, hand prints, palm prints, hairs -- they said there was a struggle on so there would be hairs from all three of them. They was a drifter, allegedly, Amanda and Raffaele. There was nothing from Amanda and Raffaele -- nothing. The drifter left palm prints, bloody fingerprints, DNA, he left everything all over the room. There was all that for one person. There was not anything for Amanda and Raffaele."

After looking through hours of the crime scene video that started the moment police arrived, Moore says, "There is nothing to put them in that room."

And regarding Knox's confession, Moore said she was "absolutely coerced."

He said, "The bad joke is you can always convict anyone. It's just the innocent take a little more time."

He added a technique called "leapfrog" was used by Italian police on Knox. The method, he explained, consists of questioning a suspect ove a long period. In Knox's case, he said it was all night by two people every hour.

Moore added the prosecutor who led the case against Knox, Giuliano Mignini, was convicted himself of malfeasance for conduct during a separate murder investigation.

[lucifersshadow]

Americans like to shoot at other countries legal systems, their governments, their leaders . . . dispite the fact that our system is no better than theirs. Such hipocracy. This is the reason we end up is so many pointless wars too. The USA has been in more wars than any other country on the planet. That has got to tell you something. The problem is not over there, it is here in the USA. We pay dearly for the ignorance of our citizens and government.

[bobnjersey]

[The USA has been in more wars than any other country on the planet. That has got to tell you something.]

short of six degees of seperation ... it tells me nothing at all about the amanda knox conviction.

[MickeyMouseSully]

The point is that an obvious injustice has occurred in Perugia. Retired FBI Agent Steve Moore has the courage and integrity and compassion to stand up for an innocent young American who now suffers greatly far from home. Bravo, Mr. Moore. You make me proud of the FBI.

[FastSailR]

Italy was once good at Opera, but science and scientific police work eludes them. They don't even compete in pizza preparation anymore. Berlusconi is like a really corrupt George Bush. Sad... maybe the Albanians or the Roma can make something of the place. When in Rome, do as the Roma do.

[mjlewis6]

They do this kind of stuff in their legal system....and guess what?

IT is done here as well. DNA tests have released many men wrongfully convicted of rape after serving YEARS and DECADES for the crime.

[carlo_65]

Italy is a third world country?Where did you read it?
On which cartoons?You shouldn't read cartoons at you age,but serious
newpaper.But,can you understand what they say?I doubt.
Question: If it is a third world country,how come is a menber of the
7 most industrializes country in the world?Do you know that Italy as
the same industrial power of that Great Britain? Do you know that
Italy has more industries that France?
Do you know that the living standar of the italians who live from
Rome to the alps is higher of any equivalent area in Germany or the
U.S.A.? No,you don't know all these things.
The tipical AMERICAN LACK OF ANY CULTURE
I wonder if the americans people know how to write and read.

[northboern]

Italy is a third world country, with a third world judicial system.

[elenoireelenoire]

Third world country? hahahahaha USA is a THIRD world country, USA IS FAMOUS FOR HAMBURGER AND HOD DOG, MEXICAN,BLACK,,, AND ALL TRASH FROM THE WORLD
WHAT PRODUCE YOUR STUPID COUNTRY, ITALY MAKE FERRARI,LAMBORGHINI,MASERATIPAGANI,DUCATI,BVULGARI,BEST FASHION,BEST CUISINE.BEVERLY HILLS,LA JOLLA,MONTECARLO,MIAMI IS FULL OF ITALIAN GOODS
CARS,CLOTHING,ITALIAN RESTAURANT,ITALIAN FURNITURE. WHAT USA PRODUCE NOTHING JUST MCDOANLDS AND TACO BELL

Italy has a capitalist economy with high GDP per capita and developed infrastructure. According to the International Monetary Fund, in 2008 Italy was the seventh-largest economy in the world and the fourth-largest in Europe. Italy is member of the Group of Eight (G8) industrialized nations, the European Union and the OECD.


The Milan Stock Exchange.In the post-war period, Italy was transformed from a weak, agricultural based economy which had been severely affected by the consequences of World War II, into one of the world's most industrialized nations,[102] and a leading country in world trade and exports, even so that in 1987, the Italian economy surpassed the British economy, by GDP (nominal), an event known as 'il sorpasso'[103] and in 1991 Italy became for a while the fourth worldwide economic power, overcoming also France.[104]

According to the World Bank, Italy has high levels of freedom for investments, business and trade. Italy is a developed country, and, according to The Economist, has the world's 8th highest quality of life.[10] The country enjoys a very high standard of living, and is the world's 18th most developed country, surpassing Germany, Greece and the UK.[5] According to the last Eurostat data, Italian per capita GDP at purchasing power parity remains approximately equal to the EU average,[105] while the unemployment rate (8.5%) stands as one of the EU's lowest.[106]

Italy has the world's 4th largest gold reserve.[107] The country is also well-known for its influential and innovative business economic sector,[108] an industrious and competitive agricultural sector[108] (Italy is the world's largest wine producer[109]), and for its creative and high-quality automobile, industrial, appliance and fashion design.[108]

[jnostromo]

Sorry, but I am still not buying her innocence..her behavior her arrest before and during the entire process speaks volumes...

[arch2011]

I can't believe I still hear people judge her on her behavior... Speaks volumes? To you perhaps, but to me the fact that it "speaks volumes" is evidence of nothing, except evidence about YOU.

[jeflek]

If I were convicted of a crime I didn't commit, I'd be demanding a polygraph test. Maybe not admissible in court, but I'd make it available for the world to see. Why hasn't Ms. Knox done that I wonder?

[us_1776]

I see you know nothing about polygraphs.

They are about as reliable as a Ouija board.

This is why attorneys almost always advise against taking a polygraph, whether you are innocent or guilty. They can backfire on you if you get an 'indeterminate' result.



.

[Cattzen]

Amanda Knox was immature and ignorant of prosecution tactics. I'm sure the language and unknown possibilities with threats had lot to play in her not abiding by her legal rights.

It's a sad story to witness a young life wasted, or in this case at least two?

[tsigili]

She's still in prison, so either somebody wasn't doing their job very well, in defending her, or that's just stupid refusal to believe an American can be guilty of crimes abroad.

[bobnjersey]

[She's still in prison, so either somebody wasn't doing their job very well, in defending her, or that's just stupid refusal to believe an American can be guilty of crimes abroad. ]

... or ... it's just 'stupid refusal' to believe that the italian justice system in this case didn't 'railroad' her ... and no defense that could have been brought would have made a difference.

[Uncle_Eccoli]

She was convicted because she's American, plain and simple.

[kmccdoc]

And the other two who were convicted of this murder who are not Americans were found guilty why? You just believe she is innocent because she is american.

[larthia2]

I didn't want to believe this at first, but I do believe things would have been different had she been Italian. I'm not sure if "American" matters as much as "foreign." As for Guede, of course they convicted him, there was abundant forensic evidence. As for Raffaele, he his family is from Puglia, and anyone who has spent any time in Italy knows how much hatred there is for southern italians in provincial towns like Perugia.

[eapplebaum]

oh, Johnny, just to clarify to you...The justice system in Perugia, Italy (not the same as all f Italy), accused an American 19 yr old girl and her Italian 23 yr old boyfriend of 2 weeks (or less) first. THEN they accused a 22 yr old "kid" originally from The Ivory Coast who was considered a drifter and was notable very disturbed in that period. it was reported that he broke into several legal offices, a home and a nursery school wielding a kitchen knife. it was reported he tried to woo the ladies and was rejected on numerous occasions. He fathomed himself a drifting party boy. does the word "sketchy" come to mind? Raffaele Sollecito (Italian boyfriend) had NEVER met Rudy Guede (young man from the Ivory Coast), Amanda and Meredith had met Rudy perhaps once. Rudy expressed in letter made public he found Meredith and Amanda attractive. There is much much more that would tell ANYONE who the sole killer is and why. Besides there being his DNA and prints and confession of being there, his behavior in the days prior to the incident, reported in a judges report (which I personally have read, reading & speaking Italian fluently), tell of a disturbed young man.
Something is not right in the quiet beautiful city of Perugia. I don't think anyone cares what they do or are doing, I believe we all want the innocent people accused of this horrendous and heinous murder to that poor beautiful girl to be released and cleared as they are undoubtedly innocent. The justice system of Perugia needs to start helping the family put together what really happened that night and then they will be able to begin their healing process, but while this gruesome trial of lies continues, they are doing the opposite of what they are supposed to be doing...it's a travesty, this whole mess is a travesty.