Family Shocked By Knox And Sollecito Acquittal

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Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito have been acquitted on appeal of the murder of British student Meredith Kercher.

A tearful Ms Knox said she was "tremendously relieved" following the judgement by Italy's top court, which brings an eight-year legal saga to a close.

The family of Ms Kercher have said they were shocked by the ruling, although they knew it was a possibility.

In a statement they said: "Emotions are naturally raw at this stage. The decision came as a shock but was an outcome we knew was possible, even if it wasn't what we expected.

"We have briefly spoken with our legal representative in Italy, but we now understand this decision to be definitive and the end of what has been a long and difficult process for all concerned.

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Gallery: Meredith Kercher Murder: Key Events

2 November 2007: The body of Meredith Kercher, 21, is found in her Perugia apartment. Investigators say she was killed the night before

Ms Kercher's flatmate, Amanda Knox, is pictured kissing her then-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito in the days after the murder

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Police investigate the scene of the crime

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6 November 2007: Knox is arrested along with Sollecito and Diya 'Patrick' Lumumba, the Congolese owner of the pub where Knox occasionally worked

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20 November 2007: Mr Lumumba, implicated by Knox in her statements to police, is released from jail for lack of evidence

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"We believe we will learn of the full reasoning behind the decision in the coming months but for now we need some time to take this in and remember Meredith, the victim at the heart of this."

Ms Kercher, who was 21 and from Coulsdon in Surrey, was sexually assaulted and stabbed to death in Perugia in 2007.

Her flatmate Knox, a student from Seattle in the US, and Knox's then-boyfriend Sollecito spent four years in jail for the murder but were acquitted on appeal in 2011.

Knox, now 27, returned to the US before an appeal court threw out the acquittal and reinstated her and Sollecito's guilty verdicts last year.

But the legal seesawing now seems to be over after both convictions were annulled by Italy's Supreme Court.

"Finished!" declared Knox's lawyer, Carlo Dalla Vedova, after the decision was read out.

He then called his client, who was "crying because she was so happy".

Within minutes Knox, who was not present at the hearing having remained in Seattle, released a statement saying: "I am tremendously relieved and grateful for the decision of the Supreme Court of Italy.

"The knowledge of my innocence has given me strength in the darkest times of this ordeal.

"And throughout this ordeal, I have received invaluable support from family, friends, and strangers. To them, I say: thank-you from the bottom of my heart. Your kindness has sustained me."

The judges, after 10 hours of deliberation, concluded that a conviction could not be supported by the evidence.

Their reasoning will be released within 90 days.

A Knox family statement added: "Countless people - from world-renowned DNA experts, to former FBI agents, to everyday citizens committed to justice - have spoken about her innocence. We are thrilled."

Sollecito's lawyer, Giulia Bongiorno, shouted "Yes, yes, yes" after the judgement was read out.

"You never saw Raffaele pleading, or praying. He has been a rock," she said.

"He is at home with his father and he is very happy. The verdict has proved him completely right."

The original guilty verdicts led to sentences of 28 years for Knox and 25 years for Sollecito.

The couple maintained their innocence, insisting that they had spent the evening together at Sollecito's place watching a movie, smoking marijuana and having sex.

Another man, Rudy Guede, from Ivory Coast, was arrested, tried and convicted of the murder in a separate trial and is serving a 16-year sentence.

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