During her Famous Trials class, New Jersey native Emmalee Meing ’23 audaciously asked Amanda Knox, whose murder trial earned extraordinary media attention, for an interview. Originally convicted, Knox served four years in an Italian prison before being exonerated. “I imagined myself in her shoes and was able to see her story from that perspective,” says Meing, a forensic psychology major, who hopes to become a forensic mental health therapist. “I direct messaged Amanda on Instagram and asked if she would be open to a podcast interview.”
What surprised you the most during your interview?
Her willingness to sit down with me. She has dedicated her life to telling her story, but on a much bigger platform than a college student’s first podcast. She refused to blatantly blame the investigators for mishandling her case. Not once did she speak with malice.
As a scholar of justice, what takeaways do you want our community to learn from the Amanda Knox case?
Don’t be too quick to judge someone based on how they behave in times of crisis before weighing the concrete evidence. Investigative protocol needs to be revised, regulated, and upheld. Theories should be guided by evidence, not predetermined with biased beliefs. Forensic evidence contamination is avoidable. And, the hyper-sexualization of young women in the media is very real and problematic.
What was it like interviewing someone so well-known?
I was extremely nervous to conduct the interview. I prepped for days but nothing really prepares you to interview an exoneree about their harrowing experience in prison. Amanda was gracious, personable, and patient. There were times when we laughed, and other times that deserved a moment of seriousness and reflection.
After interviewing Amanda Knox, what adjectives would you use to describe her?
Dedicated. She has not faltered in her fight to uphold her innocence and shed light on the lives of the wrongfully accused. Altruistic. She’s a new mother, a writer, and an understandably busy woman, yet she took the time out of her weekend to sit down with me. Intelligent. She has done her due diligence. She’s devoted her adulthood to understanding the intricacies of what happened to her, and she’s committed to preventing others from experiencing the same fate.
