Stephanie Kercher, the sister of Meredith Kercher, has voiced criticism regarding a forthcoming comedy show by Amanda Knox, urging Knox to consider the feelings of her family. The show is slated to be part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
"It's not just our family that feels this pain, and I do think this is something that needs to be looked at, because it sets a precedent for anyone else to do a show like this," Stephanie Kercher told BBC Breakfast. She indicated a desire for the issue to be examined and expressed an interest in meeting Prime Minister Andy Burnham to discuss it.
Kercher suggested that a show with a generic theme, even one that pushes boundaries, would be different. However, she stated, "Because this is associated with an individual case and individual person, I think that's where the worry lies here for me, because who else is this going to then open up this opportunity for."
Meredith Kercher, from Surrey, UK, and Amanda Knox, from Seattle, USA, were both language exchange students sharing a house in Perugia, Italy. Meredith Kercher was found dead in the house with her throat cut and having been sexually assaulted.
Knox and her then-boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, were arrested on suspicion of the murder. Knox served four years in an Italian prison before she and Sollecito were acquitted on appeal. Their convictions were reinstated in a retrial in 2014 but finally overturned by Italy's top appeals court in 2015.
Rudy Guede, who is from Ivory Coast, served a 16-year sentence for Kercher's murder after his fingerprints were found at the scene. The court determined Guede did not act alone, but no other accomplices were convicted after Knox and Sollecito's acquittal.
The venue for Knox's upcoming show, the Gilded Balloon Teviot, stated that the Edinburgh Festival Fringe provides a platform for a wide range of voices in line with its commitment to freedom of expression.