Amanda Knox Update: Lawsuit Threatened Over Lifetime Movie
(CBS/AP) Lawyers for Amanda Knox and her Italian ex-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito, who were found guilty of killing Knox's British roommate Meredith Kercher in Italy, have formally demanded that cable channel Lifetime scrap a film about their trial.
Attorneys Carlo Dalla Vedova and Luca Maori said Saturday they had sent letters to Lifetime warning they would go to U.S. court to try to sequester the film if it isn't canceled and a trailer removed from Lifetime's website.
"Amanda Knox: Murder on Trial in Italy," which features "Heroes" star Hayden Panettiere in the title role, is due to air Feb. 21.
Les Eisner, a spokesman for Lifetime's parent company, A&E Television Networks, said the network was not commenting at this time.
Knox and Sollecito were convicted in 2009 of sexually assaulting and murdering Kercher in the rented house Knox and Kercher shared in the university town of Perugia, where both were studying. Kercher's body was found in a pool of blood on Nov. 2, 2007, her throat slit. Forensic experts said she was killed the night before.
Knox was sentenced to 26 years in prison; Sollecito 25 years. Both deny wrongdoing and their appeals trial is under way.
The film is based on the trial. A preview posted to Lifetime's website shows scenes from the run-up to the murder - including one split-second scene showing the actress playing Kercher, wearing a gray bra, being attacked by two men.
In its 2009 ruling, the Perugia court said that on the night of the murder Knox and Sollecito were at the house with a fourth person, Rudy Hermann Guede, an Ivory Coast citizen who has also been convicted of murder in separate proceedings.
The victim's father, Jon Kercher, has already harshly criticized the re-enactment scenes as "absolutely horrific."
Knox's attorney Della Vedova said Saturday he had sent a warning Thursday to Lifetime to cancel the film and trailer.
Sollecito's attorney Maori said the warning included a threat to go to court to sequester the film to ensure it wasn't aired. He said it presented scenes that were "beyond any logic" and hyped up to attract viewers.
The trial of Amanda Knox has been covered extensively by CBS News' 48 Hours | Mystery.
COMPLETE COVERAGE OF AMANDA KNOX ON CRIMESIDER
