Memo on amanda knox
Memorandum
Date: February 7, 2014
To: The President
From:Secretary of State
Subject: Extradition of Amanda Knox to Italy
Problem:
American citizen Amanda Knox has, in sequence, been convicted, acquitted, and convicted of the same murder in Italy. The current conviction carries a 28½ year sentence. Knox was released from an Italian prison after four years confinement following her acquittal and did not attend the current conviction trial. She is currently in the United States and has stated publically that she will never willingly return to Italy to endure imprisonment. She maintains her innocence. There is considerable debate in the media about whether she will be returned to Italy by the US government. Italy has not yet requested extradition. The problem is whether to approve extradition or not and how this will affect public opinion and our countries relationship to other countries.
Analysis:
This is not a simple legal matter. Amanda Knox’s extradition from the United States involves many complexities of law and public opinion. Public opinion is ambiguous and some Americans say we should extradite her and some say we should not. Even when two countries have an extradition treaty, the intricacies of law and public opinion can stand in the way of removing an accused criminal from one country to another. This decision is based on a number of things, one of the most important being what the American population wants. Following her conviction on Thursday, Knox, faces a nervous wait to see if the nation's Supreme Court upholds her sentence of 28-years and six-months. If it does, Italy would then have to seek her extradition under the terms of a 1983 treaty - which would then have to be approved or rejected by me the US Secretary of State and forwarded to the US Department of Justice for processing. In the immediate aftermath of Thursday's guilty verdict, many legal commentators and Knox's own legal team have consoled themselves with the notion that
Date: February 7, 2014
To: The President
From:Secretary of State
Subject: Extradition of Amanda Knox to Italy
Problem:
American citizen Amanda Knox has, in sequence, been convicted, acquitted, and convicted of the same murder in Italy. The current conviction carries a 28½ year sentence. Knox was released from an Italian prison after four years confinement following her acquittal and did not attend the current conviction trial. She is currently in the United States and has stated publically that she will never willingly return to Italy to endure imprisonment. She maintains her innocence. There is considerable debate in the media about whether she will be returned to Italy by the US government. Italy has not yet requested extradition. The problem is whether to approve extradition or not and how this will affect public opinion and our countries relationship to other countries.
Analysis:
This is not a simple legal matter. Amanda Knox’s extradition from the United States involves many complexities of law and public opinion. Public opinion is ambiguous and some Americans say we should extradite her and some say we should not. Even when two countries have an extradition treaty, the intricacies of law and public opinion can stand in the way of removing an accused criminal from one country to another. This decision is based on a number of things, one of the most important being what the American population wants. Following her conviction on Thursday, Knox, faces a nervous wait to see if the nation's Supreme Court upholds her sentence of 28-years and six-months. If it does, Italy would then have to seek her extradition under the terms of a 1983 treaty - which would then have to be approved or rejected by me the US Secretary of State and forwarded to the US Department of Justice for processing. In the immediate aftermath of Thursday's guilty verdict, many legal commentators and Knox's own legal team have consoled themselves with the notion that