Translation of Amanda Knox’s speech in court – October 3, 2011:
Dear ladies and gentlemen of the court:
It has been said that I am a different person than who really I am. One doesn’t understand who I am - I am afraid.
(Judge: You can be seated, if you want.
Amanda: It is ok.)
I am the same person I was four years ago, the same person. The only
thing that distinguishes me from four years ago is that I suffered (what
I have gone through). In four years I lost a friend in a most brutal
and unexplainable possible way. My absolute trust in authority of
police has been lost. I had to face accusations, absolutely unfair
without foundations, and I am paying with my life for things that I
didn’t do. Four years ago I was four years younger (in age), also I was
basically a younger person. I never suffered in my life before four
years ago.
In a sense before four years ago, I didn’t know what tragedy was. The
only tragedy I could see was on TV. I’ve never faced such fear, such
tragedy and suffering.
I didn’t know how to face it, how to interpret it and absorb it
deeply, how I was feeling when we discovered when Meredith was killed.
I couldn’t believe how it was possible, I was afraid, because one
person with whom I spent my life, who had her bedroom next to mine, was
killed in our house. And if I was there that night I would be dead, like
her. The only difference was that I wasn’t there. I was with
Raffaelle.
Fortunately he was there with me, not only at that moment,
but also afterwards. I didn’t have anybody. He was everything for me at
that moment. I was calling my family, it is true, but at that moment,
in that specific moment, I had him. I had him.
And the other thing that I had was my moral obligations to help justice
and police, in whom I had trust. Because they were there to look for who
was guilty, and they were there to protect us at the same time. I
trusted them completely, without any doubt.
And when I was completely available in those days, I was tricked.
The night between the 5th and the 6th of November, I was not only
stressed out and pushed, but I was manipulated. I am not what they say I
am - a perverse, violent person; this is not me. The things that they
say I did, I didn’t kill, I didn’t abuse, I didn’t steal, I wasn’t there
(at the scene) during the crime. I didn’t know Rudy.
I remember the police asking me to list all people that Meredith, we
knew in that period in Perugia. I remember I said something about that
guy. I know that Meredith and I met him in the apartment of the boys
downstairs. I know he was playing basketball with the boys, but I didn’t
know him even by his name. He was like everybody else around, just a
face. He wasn’t a person with whom I had any kind of contact. Also,
when they (the prosecution) said that I knew him, I never did what they
say I did, but they say it happened like that. And even sometimes they
say I didn’t do things, they change versions of what they say. They say
it happened.
But it is not like that. I had good relationship with everybody.
(With) my roommates, I was messy, I had an open mind; we had a good
relationship. We were always available to each other. I was spending
my time mostly with Meredith. We were friends. She worried about me
when I was going to work, she was always friendly and dear to me.
Meredith was killed and I always wanted justice for her. I am not
running away from the truth, and I never escaped from the truth. I
insist on finding the truth. I insist after four desperate years, on my
innocence, and on our innocence, because it is the truth and we deserve
to be protected, recognized.
I want to go back home, I want to go back to my life. I don’t want to
be punished. I don’t want my life taken away from me, my future, for
something I didn’t do because I am innocent. Rafaelle is innocent. We
deserve freedom because we didn’t commit this crime.
I have lot of respect for this court and for how the court conducted
this trial, and I am thankful, and for this reason I ask for justice.
Translation for KING5 by Paola Copolla-Kuvac.
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