Darkness Descending - The Murder of Meredith Kercher

by Paul Russell, Graham Johnson, Garofano

It was a brutal murder, and the trial of the decade. On 1 November 2007, 21-year-old British student Meredith Kercher was slaughtered in cold blood in the apartment in Perugia, Italy, that she shared with three other girls. Two bright young people, Amanda Knox and her Italian ex-boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, stood accused of the killing in a trial that lasted through 2009. They were found guilty and sentenced to twenty-six and twenty-five years respectively on 4 December. A second man, Ivory Coast-born Rudy Guede, 22, had already been found guilty of the sexual assault and murder of Meredith in a separate trial in 2008 and sentenced to thirty years, but the prosecution always stated that he didn't act alone. Kercher was a model student whilst American Knox acquired a reputation that fuelled specualtion about her character. Her bizarre behaviour just after Meredith's body was found, her false accusation of an innocent man, her weak alibi and her DNA on the murder weapon - a kitchen knife found to be scubbed with bleach - went against her.TV producer Paul Russell and critically acclaimed crime writer Graham Johnson have teamed up with leading Italian forensics expert General Luciano Garofano to reveal the full truth behind this sensational murder and its trial. They unravel all the details and study all the personalities in this case that has stunned the world. Complex, and some say controversial, DNA evidence is explained in simple language and, bit by bit, a story emerges of brutality and jealousy in a university town where all was not what it seemed. Their findings make for gripping, sensational reading.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction

272 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Paul Russell is an independent producer and director.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Diane in Australia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Published in 2010, this book does not contain all the more recent twists, and turns, in this case. It ends with the completion of the trial that was held in 2009.

This is certainly a whodunit type of crime. So many variables. So many opinions. Amanda Knox, Raffaele Sollecito, and Rudy Guede, are all suspects. DNA is found. Alleged staged break-in. Alleged contaminated evidence ... left at the scene for over a month. Somewhat 'unusual' behaviour by Amanda Knox immediately after Meredith's death, and off-and-on throughout. That doesn't make her guilty, but it does draw attention. And on, and on, and on ... this case has it all.

4 Stars = Outstanding. It definitely held my interest.

[Trevor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liked the book but unsure what to make of the trial. Looks like an absolute farce!

There's no way Foxy Knoxy is innocent, neither Raffaele - they should have took their punishment with Guede.

Be interesting to see Knox's account coming out soon, no doubt painting her to be an angel.

Face facts, her DNA was found all over the place, and Guede didn't kill Meredith on his own.

[Piyush Gupta · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book mostly revolves round the first week of the tragedy. Meredith, a girl on exchange programme from Britain was brutally murdered in Perugia, Italy. Investigation drilled it down to three suspects Amanda Knox (victim's roommate), Raffale Sollecito (Amanda's boy friend) and Rudy Guede. However they couldn't get the confession out of the three suspects, motive for the murder was unclear, only theories were made by prosecution. Rudy's DNA and fingerprints were everywhere in the crime scene but Amanda and Raffale were roped in for following reason :
They have been telling lies. Raffale said he was with Amanda the night of the murder. And they were at his place watching movie on his laptop, however no activity was observed on his laptop on the fateful night.
Amanda's behaviour post murder was strange, doesn't appeared like she lost a dear one.
A broken window was observed in the house, it appeared that a 'break- in' was staged to divert the investigation. So, it was concluded that the murderer was someone who had the access to the house.
Amanda playing blame-game, convicting her ex-employer, a bar owner Patrick Lubamba, as the perpetrator. Lubamba was later acquitted after presenting an alibi.
A knife was collected from Raffale's flat which contained both Amanda's and Merideth's DNA.
Sollecito's DNA was found on the bra claps in Merideth's room.

All three suspects were sentenced imprisonment. But lack of clear motive and "no confessions", made this crime still a mystery.

[Sam Woodfield]

This really was an interesting read which revealed a lot about a case I had read about in the news and thought I knew alot about. It left me wondering about the conclusiveness of the evidence collected and the role the media had to play in securing a conviction. Thats not to say that a major miscarriage of justice has taken place, as it does appear that the right people were held accountable, but it raises questions about the accuracy of the forensic methods employed by the Italian legal system.

I would recommend this read to anyone who showed an interest in the case of Amnda Knox and Meredith Kercher as it really does give a very different picture than that shown on the news. A really fascinating and thought provoking read!

[Charli Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I find this a difficult book, in hindsight. Because so much has happened since this was written, and public perception played a huge part in that. I am truly undecided which way to think. I am just sad this poor young lady lost her life, and yet, she is often stated secondary to Amanda Knox, in so many sources. Whichever way you look at it, it's sad that a life was lost.

The book was written with an agenda. That much is clear. Whether that agenda was correct and well-meaning, is something I would now question. However, more things come to light in so many respects I don't want to be negative about the book unnecessarily.

I certainly do not believe one way or the other with Amanda Knox, as I am not qualified to make such a judgement.

[Rachael · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book fills in details that it’s authors absolutely cannot know. It takes details that are verified and then adds in “a nice story” of details- such as Rudy Guede waking up at points on the train; Meredith feeling and doing things that the author imagines would happen in a case. They don’t include any of the appeals. Amanda’s behaviour in court isn’t even mentioned- the court case getting very little attention. There are better books on this case such as “Death in Perugia”. This is quite one sided it feels.

[Ape · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting enough read, although it leaves you still asking the same questions by the end of it. And this book was published in 2010 and it's now out of date. Because Amanda Knox and her ex Sollecito were released last year because of doubts over DNA - not exactly the same as saying they're innocent. I couldn't see on the net whether the guy from the Ivory Coast was released as well. I just had a look on the net, and apparently Amanda Knox has signed a 2.4 million book deal recently. Hmmm. That's part of what I really found depressing in this entire book - the whole human society, 'money-talks' aspect. Meredith Kercher is murdered, and as soon as these two rich kids are arrested, there's this massive push to get them released, discredit everything the police say, expensive lawyers hired to tear holes in everything; Amanda Knox even had an American PR team. Is no one bothered about Meredith Kercher? Or the truth? There was a part in the labs when they were analysising DNA on the knife (lawyers and experts from both defences are allowed to be present through all this) and as soon as they said they'd found Meredith and Amanda on the knife, the immediate response was - it must have been contaminated in the lab! The whole thing does make you wonder if justice actually exsits at all. But then again, this is a murder case, so you're not really starting off from a base of honesty and fairness.

By the end of this book, I can't say I'm particularly convinced about any of the motives, or who was the actual person who did the deed. It seems like all three of them were there, at least from the evidence found that they write about in this book. And on the one hand Amanda is portrayed as this obnoxious, thoughtless, arogant brat - but that doesn't make her a murderer! But then she does things like accuse an innocent man of murdering Meredith, and you've got to wonder. I suspect no one will ever know what happened there now.

For the most part this book is a bit of a page turner, although sometimes it can't decide if it wants to be a true crime account or a poorly written, sensationalist crime thriller (too many adjectives!). But at the end, it just leaves you with a bad feeling about the world and systems in general; and a very big reminder that life just isn't fair.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Almost everyone has an opinion on this case and the media circus surrounding it. The entire thing has turned into a quintessential 'whodunnit' farce - this has not been helped by the media's insistence on glamourising the horrific murder at the centre of it all. This book was published in 2009, before the acquittal and subsequent re-trials of the accused. This gives the book a bit of an advantage, as the author has not yet been influenced by the new information - which may or may not be true - that has overshadowed perhaps the essential fundamentals of what secured the original convictions.

Unlike some true crime authors, Russell, Johnson and Garofano collaborate well to offer a collective insight into the weeks and days leading up to the murder. The atmosphere of the small town of Perugia, the student lifestyle that dwarfs the traditional Italian customs, such as all-night partying, pizza binges and clandestine encounters between students from all over the world. The scene is set, in essence, for the perfect murder.

It is not necessary to have a good knowledge of the case, as this book offers a comprehensive overview of the essential facts which have become widely-available due to the very public investigation. The authors focus significantly on the collective failures of the police to secure the crime scene, and of the investigative process that follows. Knox and Sollecito make up two thirds of the accused party, although they are afforded the most suspicion. Knox in particular is the subject of mass suspicion - references to her past, her sexuality, her intelligence, are all fair game in the opinion of the researchers. It does make one wonder why Sollecito is not investigated in the same way. I questioned at times whether or not the authors were jumping on the bandwagon with other journalists.

Overall, a well-researched and interesting account of the murder of Meredith Kercher. The authors do not neglect to pay tribute to Kercher's family, for their strength and resilience in the face of such a devastating event. This is perhaps the best testimony to their collective writing of the case.

[Lisa Louie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll admit it: I was/am addicted to the Amanda Knox case, particularly at its height when Knox and Sollecito were still being held without formal charges. I read everything that Google helped me to find online, supposed fact or wild rumor (although, I'll admit that I never read the short stories that she posted on MySpace). Then, when the Knox media campaign intervened with the family's preferred spin, my interest lost its urgency. Much to my delight, I encountered this book in the airport with half a day of sitting on airplanes and trains ahead of me, and I read it within two days. Sadly, it had very little to say, both in terms of facts or analysis, that I had not already read online.

The crime scene photos are chilling, as is the narrative of accounts of those who saw and interacted with Amanda Knox in those critical first hours after Meredith's body was discovered. Although this book did little to challenge the conclusions that I had already made about the case, it portrayed and gave context to the shocking brutality that was done to Meredith Kercher. At the end of it, we may discover that all-American, Seattle-ite Knox was innocent all along, but even this would not change the fact that she behaved utterly bizarrely and with total disregard for the dead. For this, to the extent that we hold Knox up as symbol for all the ways in which Europeans unjustly misunderstand us and mischaracterize us abroad, we Americans still deserve to be ashamed.

[Pupottina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un libro tratto da fatti di cronaca che chiarisce e svela ciò che in tv non viene detto.
Scende nei dettagli del caso e fa addentrare il lettore nel mondo di chi indaga sul controverso, contraddittorio ed ancora avvolto nel mistero, “Caso di Perugia”, quello in cui morì Meredith Kercher.
Il 5 dicembre 2009, il Tribunale di Perugia ha condannato Amanda Knox e Raffaele Sollecito.
Il saggio è stato scritto nel 2010, poi sappiamo che le vicende giudiziarie sono cambiate ma non il modo in cui si è svolta la vicenda di cronaca e gli individui che ruotano intorno.
Il libro, però, descrive dettagliatamente la scena del crimine, gli indizi e le prove che accusa e difesa hanno portato in scena.
Le vicende, come accade in questo genere di libri, i True Crime book, romanzano gli eventi e ne raccontano, per mezzo di ipotesi, vagliate da prove e ricostruizioni, il reale o probabile svolgimento.
Consigliato per gli appassionati delle vicende di cronaca.
Peccato soltanto che siano in costante fase di ribaltamento e mai definitivamente concluse.

[Hayley · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was the trial of the decade. On 4 December 2009, 22 year old American Amanda Knox, her former boyfriend 25 year old Raffaele Sollecito were found guilty of murdering British student Meredith Knox in Perugia, Italy.

A well written detailed account of the case, mystery seems to surround Amanda Knox as the story unfolds. Even today many are convinced she's innocent. She's certainly odd!

[Matthew White · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too much flowery prose for my liking. Overall: not satisfying. It was, after all, rushed off the press.

[Micol Frizziero · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un libro che ripercorre le fasi del delitto di Perugia. Diretto, crudo, una lettura di facile interpretazione anche per i non addetti ai lavori.