Amanda Knox has detailed disturbing allegations of mistreatment while in custody following her arrest in connection with the murder of British student Meredith Kercher. The 37-year-old American claims she was subjected to sexual assault by prison guards and forced to strip naked for a search by a male doctor in Perugia, Italy, back in 2007.
Knox and her former Italian boyfriend went through a series of legal proceedings related to Kercher’s murder, with conflicting verdicts before being finally cleared by the Cassation Court in 2015. Despite her acquittal, Knox faced a slander conviction for falsely accusing an innocent man of the crime.
In her upcoming memoir “Free,” Knox is set to reveal more about the degrading treatment she allegedly endured during her time in jail. She recounts incidents of inappropriate behavior by guards, including unwanted advances and intrusive questioning about her personal life.
Since her release from prison, Knox has reported receiving a mix of love letters, marriage proposals, and death threats. Although she avoided further jail time after her slander conviction, Knox had already spent close to four years in custody during the legal process. Her focus has been on vindicating herself from any wrongdoing.
Returning to the United States in 2011, Knox has since become an advocate for the wrongly accused, launching a podcast with her spouse and preparing for the release of her memoir, “Free: My Search for Meaning.”
The high-profile case dates back to 2007 when Knox, then a student in Perugia, was implicated in Kercher’s murder along with her boyfriend at the time, Raffaele Sollecito. Ultimately, Rudy Hermann Guede was convicted of the crime based on DNA evidence found at the scene. Knox was later awarded damages by the European court for police misconduct, recognizing her vulnerability as a foreign student with limited Italian proficiency.