Amanda Knox Court Victory: Wins Money, Not Freedom in Invasion of Privacy Suit
MILAN, Italy (CBS) Amanda Knox has won a monetary victory in an Italian court, in a lawsuit for invasion of privacy. The Seattle native, who's serving a 26-year sentence for the murder of her British roommate Meredith Kercher in November 2007 -- a verdict she is appealing -- was awarded $55,000 in a judgment against an Italian media company for publishing excerpts of Knox's personal notebooks.
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The notebooks were confiscated by police in Perugia, Italy when they arrested Knox, and journalist Fiorenza Sarzanini somehow gained access to them, publishing excerpts in several articles and in a book, entitled "Amanda e gli atria" (Amanda and the Others).
The notebooks did not become evidence in Knox's criminal trial. Under Italian law they are considered her private property, and were eventually transferred to the prison where she's held near Perugia.
Knox's Italian lawyer, Carlo dalla Vedova, told CBS News that the finding in Knox's favor is further proof that even though the notebook material was not part of the trial, the jury was negatively influenced by it, and that the prosecution's characterization of her was completely wrong.
Knox, who is appealing her murder conviction, may also appeal Thursday's civil finding. Her lawyers had been seeking about ten times the amount awarded by the judge.
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