Knox and Sollecito were initially found guilty in connection with Kercher's murder, but were ultimately acquitted two years later on appeal. Knox went home to Seattle to finish her studies at the University of Washington. Sollecito moved to Verona to take up studies in robotic surgery. The case seemed to be over. For most people, especially those of us who followed the case closely, the high court hearing was supposed to be just a formality -- they would confirm the acquittal and we could all go home and put the case to rest.
Now everything is up in the air again. Italy's highest court decided to reject the acquittal in its entirety and send the case back to a panel of appellate judges to reconsider. What that means in practical terms is nothing short of a complicated, confusing mess. When Knox was first convicted of murder, there was outcry in the United States that she was wrongfully convicted, based on shoddy evidence collected by sloppy Italian police. When she was acquitted two years later, there was nearly as much of an outcry in Italy that the courts had succumbed to American pressure. Now, the outcome is again uncertain, with the only guarantee that whatever happens, it will again cause an outcry -- it's just not clear yet by whom.
