Crime Scene:

The murder was committed in Kercher and Knox’s rental apartment which they
shared with two Italian students while attending classes at the University for Foreigners
at the University of Perugia. In a community comprised of 34,000 students, 3,000 being
foreign students, the surrounding neighborhood is full of bars and inexpensive
restaurants for students.
On the night of November 1, 2007, Kercher was found on the floor of her
bedroom, strangled, stabbed in the neck and partially unclothed with 47 cuts and bruises
on her body (Kington 1). Blood was found at the scene and in the bathroom. According
to the London Guardian, the window was broken from the inside, suggesting an attempt
to fake a robbery. Footprints were also found under the body. The murder weapon, a
bloody knife, was left at the scene.

Suspects:
Amanda Knox was the prime suspect in the case. Originally from Seattle,
Washington, at the time of Kercher's murder, Knox was a 20-year-old University of
Washington language student. She was in Perugia attending the University for
Foreigners for one year, studying Italian, German and creative writing. It was at
University that Knox met the victim, as well as Raffaele Sollecito, who later became her
boyfriend, and another suspect in the crime. Sollecito is from Giovinazzo, Bari, and
was 23 years old at the time of the murder. He was pursuing a degree in computer
engineering at the University of Perugia when he met Knox. He is from an affluent
family, the son of a urologist from Italy (Rizzo, 2009, p.1).
A third suspect in the case was Rudy Hermann Guede. Guede was aged 20 at
the time of the murder. He was originally from the Ivory Coast, and had come to
Perugia at the age of five with his father, who worked as a laborer in the 1990s. At the
age of 16, when his father left Italy, Guede was informally adopted by the family of a
local businessman. Guede had acquired joint Italian nationality and studied accounting
and hotelkeeping. He also played basketball for the Perugia youth team in the 2004–
2005 season. He often stayed with his aunt who lived in Lecco, near Milan, and
sometimes worked in Milan bars, returning occasionally to Perugia. According to
Nadeau (2007), Guede had no criminal record at the time of the murder, and was the
bouncer at the bar where Knox and Kercher spent much of their time.

Evidence:

There was considerable evidence against all three suspects, who were eventually
convicted of the crime. For instance, a bloody handprint found on a pillow under the
victim's back was matched to Guede. His DNA was also found in several locations in
the bedroom: on and inside Kercher's body; on her shirt and bra; mixed with her blood
splatter; and on her handbag. Guede's DNA was also found on toilet paper in one of the
bathrooms but no trace of his DNA was found anywhere else in the flat, including the
bedroom where the window had been broken and the contents ransacked.
Other forensic evidence included an analysis of the metal clasp of Kercher's bra
(retrieved in a second forensic search on 18 December 2007),] which revealed small
traces of DNA matching Sollecito and three other unidentified people. At trial,
Sollecito's lawyers argued that the unidentified people could have included the other
two defendants, and that the delay in retrieving the sample could have led to
contamination. From a detailed examination of the room with the broken window,
investigators concluded that the apparent break-in had been staged, partly because the
window seemed to have been broken after the room had been ransacked.[
Footprints were also found in the apartment, compatible with the feet of Knox and
Sollecito. Knox's DNA was found mixed with Kercher's blood in the footprints and
elsewhere in the apartment. A further footprint, believed to be a woman's, was found
under the body. It was the right size to be Knox's, although it was never matched to her
footwear. Knox's DNA was also found on a kitchen knife, recovered from Sollecito's
apartment, and Kercher's DNA was found on the blade.

Apart from the knife, there was no forensic evidence, such as DNA, hair, fibre,
blood or skin, directly indicating that Knox had been in the bedroom where Meredith
Kercher was sexually assaulted and murdered. The only fingerprints of Knox which
were found anywhere in the apartment were those on a glass in the kitchen sink. Knox's
fingerprints were not found in Kercher's bedroom, nor her own bedroom. For this
reason, many believe that she was not guilty of the crime, and that her conviction was
motivated by Anti-American sentiment at the time of the trial.

Conclusion:
Based on the evidence, it seems likely that Rudy Guede was guilty of Kercher’s
murder. There is tremendous forensic evidence linking him to the crime. Although
there was some evidence of Knox’s DNA at the scene, this is to be expected, as she
lived in the apartment at the time. There is also a lack of motive for Kno x to have
killed Kercher. Why would she sexually assault her roommate? There is nothing in her
past to indicate that she might commit such deviant behavior. At the time of the case,
Knox’s odd behavior and the anti-American sentiment in Europe might have biased the
jury. Knox’s family is appealing the case. In the end, the murder was a tragic
occurrence that was never satisfactorily solved.
You can make a police report either in person or by calling the non-emergency line (1-
415-553-0123) to have an officer respond to you. You can also choose to go to the
nearest police station to file your report. You are now able to make some reports via
the internet of crimes that occurred anywhere in the City and County of San Francisco.

Types of Crime Reports That Can Be Filed Online:

 Harassing Phone Calls: When you are experiencing annoying calls - with no
known suspects; for example, hang-ups or heavy breathing.
 Lost Property: When property has disappeared and not stolen. If you think it
could have been taken but you have no idea by who, you may enter the report
online.
 Theft: When property is stolen but there has been no illegal entry or contact by
the thief.
 Vandalism/Graffiti: The act of changing, modifying or defacing public or
private property, including graffiti.
 Vehicle Burglary: When property was stolen from a vehicle.
 Vehicle Tampering: Tampering with a motor vehicle, including
vandalism/graffiti of the vehicle.