Normally I do not follow sensationalized news stories.  Since I am in Perugia I decided last Saturday to check out the Meredith Kercher murder trial involving Amanda Knox and her Italian boyfriend Raphael Sollecito.  With the eyes of a foreigner I thought it would be a good idea to see the proceedings first hand.  I have never seen the legal process  in Italy and certainly not a trial with such international high profile.

The death of Meredith Kercher, a British college student, is certainly a grave tragedy.  Most residents of Perugia are not particularly interested in this event and consider the attention that has fallen on their medieval city to be a disgrace.  I was particularly taken by their respect for the passing of the young Meredith and their deference for the law.

With respect to our judicial process in America, I thought the Italian trial was conceptually the same as ours.  I particularly enjoyed the how the judge, jury and lawyers interacted with each other and the comments and murmurings emanating from the audience were a source of amusement for me.

Innocent or guilty?   Who knows?…eventually, as we say in America, “the scales of justice will decide”.