The Italian Supreme Court reversed the acquittal of Amanda Knox, previously convicted in the 2007 killing of her then-roommate, Meredith Kercher, with the help of her boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito. She was found guilty in 2009 and the Court of Appeals reversed that conviction in 2011 on grounds of insufficient evidenceand lack of motive. Meanwhile, Knox spent a long and lonely four years in Italian prison. Since her successful appeal, she has moved back to Seattle and attempted to reestablish a “normal” life as a student at the University of Washington.

So, what about that little thing we call Double Jeopardy?

First of all, Italy’s Constitution does not protect against double jeopardy and allows for the prosecution to appeal the loss of a criminal case. In the United States, the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution includes the text “nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb.” And Amanda is an American citizen. She was studying abroad at the time of the alleged offense, likely on a student visa, and is protected by the laws of the United States regardless.

Will Amanda Knox be extradited to Italy for Retrial?

Some experts on the subject disagree, but I am going to vote NO on the topic. Why? Because the United States has an Extradition Treaty with Italy dating back to the 1980’s, wherein Article 6 provides the grounds for denial of extradition: “Extradition shall be denied when the person sought has been in jeopardy in the requested State for the same offense.” Seems pretty cut and dry to me! The Italian court can also hold the trial in absentia and if they convict, can ask the U.S. government to order her extradition.

Amanda was not present in the Italian Supreme Court when it rendered its decision today and is unlikely to be taking any voluntary trips to Italy any time soon.

Did I mention someone else has ALREADY BEEN CONVICTED for the killing of Meredith Kercher?

There’s a little nugget that seems to get cut from most major news broadcasts on the subject is that Rudy Guede was convicted of murdering Meredith Kercher. After being confronted with “overwhelming DNA evidence” against him, Guede admitted being present at the house near the time of Kercher’s murder, but claimed he had gone in another room for a few minutes and came out to find Kercher bleeding to death. According to the website injusticeinperugia.org, the evidence against Guede included the following:

• Guede admitted he was in the room.
• Guede’s DNA was found all over the crime scene. 
• Guede’s DNA was found in and on Meredith’s body. Guede’s DNA along with Meredith’s blood, was found on Meredith’s purse. 
• Guede’s excrement was found in the toilet. 
• Guede’s shoe prints, set in Meredith’s blood, were found in the bedroom and hallway. 
• Guede’s handprints, in Meredith’s blood, were found on a pillowcase in Meredith’s room and on her wall. 
• Guede had a cut on his right hand that was still visible when he was arrested. 
• Guede fled the country. 

Stay tuned for more developments on the Amanda Knox Saga Italiana!

On Friday, the prosecution’s case crumbled against professional tennis umpire Lois Goodman, leading to all charges being dismissed. Goodman was accused of murder after the death of her 80-year-old husband, Alan Goodman, earlier this year.

According to the Los Angeles Times, LAPD first agreed with Lois Goodman’s account of the story, that her ailing husband had fallen down a flight of stairs. A few days later, the coroner’s office claimed that a wound to Alan Goodman’s head was consistent with having been struck with a sharp object. Homicide was alleged and suspicions turned to Lois.

Now, it appears as though the authorities have come to their senses and dropped their case against the 70-year-old grandmother, who has had to face an awful ideal after the death of her husband. One of Goodman’s lawyers, Alison Triessl, is a friend and colleague of mine. Among other things, Triessl was able to show that Lois Goodman suffered from various physical ailments that prevented her from being capable of the brutality alleged by the district attorney. The prosecution’s case was also lacking in motive, and an independent medical examiner concluded that the wounds suffered by Alan Goodman could very well have been caused by an accident. One expert also found that Goodman was likely to have died from heart failure, citing the fact that Goodman’s heart was four times larger than a normal heart.

For a “security guru,” John McAfee is not the sharpest pencil in the box. He created a website, http://www.whoismcafee.com, to track his own hiding, which is now claiming the following:

We have received an unconfirmed report that John McAfee has been captured at the border of Belize and Mexico. More information as it is received.

I can’t help but giggle at the irony of the security guru not being able to keep himself secure against the authorities – maybe a little less computer screen and a little more real life would have benefited Mr. McAfee!

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John McAfee was (and maybe still is?) in hiding, in what CNN refers to as a “tropical island paradise,” where they were able to interview him after “a secret phrase, a mysterious driver and a circuitous route full of left turns, right turns and U-turns.” The 67-year-old American is wanted for questioning in connection with the murder of his neighbor, Gregory Faull, who was found dead in his home on the Caribbean island Ambergiris Caye.

Authorities believe the dispute between the security giant and his neighbor started with the dogs. McAfee had called the police the just days before the murder to report that his four dogs had been poisoned, naming the neighbor as the culprit. Two days later, Faull was discovered in his living room with a gunshot wound to the head.

Now, McAfee is acting like a paranoid conspiracy theorist from the movies, telling CNN he has gone through some 200 disposable (“burner”) phones since the murder. Not surprisingly, he maintains his innocence in the alleged crime, and says he will not show his face publicly until the real perpetrator is arrested and charged.

Security mogul John McAfee was officially taken into custody in Guatemala this week for suspected illegal entry into the country.  In case you have been living under a rock, McAfee is wanted for questioning in relation to the apparent homicide of his neighbor.  Now, lawyers for McAfee are trying relentlessly to keep him from getting shipped back to Belize to face the music.  They are arguing for asylum, but Guatemala’s Supreme Court found there was no basis to the claim. 

Then yesterday, in a big dramatic flurry, McAfee was rushed to the hospital, surrounded by paparazzi, with “cardio vascular problems.”  In a later interview, McAfee’s attorneys told the press he had “suffered from a nervous breakdown, but tests showed he did not have heart problems,” according to CNN. 

In video footage of McAfee being wheeled into the hospital on a gurney, he appears passed out or unconscious until the nurses start to take his clothes off, when he magically regains his strength enough to say “please, not in front of the press, please.”  Funny how he conveniently came back to life to keep reporters from getting a look at his stuff, eh?  This guy is a walking three-ring circus!

With respect to his legal problems, McAfee claims that he is being persecuted by authorities in Belize, and was previously saying he would remain in hiding until they found and prosecuted the real killer.  McAfee’s neighbor was found dead just two days after McAfee had reported the neighbor for having allegedly poisoned and killed McAfee’s four dogs.