In Her Own Words

Exonree Amanda Knox describes the details of her case to the In community during the last Dillon Lecture Series of 2021. her words

Photos & Story | Kaitlyn Seiwert

Amanda Knox, a name that came to be known as the girl who killed her roommate in Italy. But can you describe anything else about her? Mother, wife, journalist, author, human are a few that come to mind after her Dillon Lecture speech at Hutchinson Community College on Nov. 9.

Knox’s book, “Waiting to Be Heard,” recounts her time spent in Italy’s judicial system. While she has been free and explaining her innocence for over ten years, she constantly finds people who still do not accept that she did not murder her roommate.

“And immediately when I walked in, these two men ran up to me, and hugged me, and said, ‘You don’t have to worry about a thing, little sister, we know,’” Knox said about her innocence.

As an American study abroad student, Knox described how she found solace in meeting with other wronglyconvicted Americans during an Innocence Project conference. It was the first event that she went to after being released. Her time spent in Italy not only impacted her mental health, but also impacted her parents and family.

“Wrongful convictions impact not just the individual who ends up getting accused,” said Knox. “But also everyone around them who loves them.”

During the lecture, Knox retold how one of her sisters dropped out of school during this time. At one point during the jail time she served in Italy, she broke down to her dad, and in return saw her dad cry for the first time.

In her time spent in prison, Knox discovered the world does not have many unbiased journalists, especially unbiased true crime journalists.

“One of the reasons why I went into journalism is because I saw what it felt like on the other side, and I know what ethical humanistic reporting feels like,” said Knox.

She begged audience members to listen not only to the victim, but all parties involved. Journalists can play a big role in true crime convictions. Headlines like “Foxy Knoxy” and “The Ice Maiden” drew an illustration for readers of Knox being a cold-hearted killer before she even went to trial.

“You were framed as a monster and everyone believed it, so too bad for you,” Knox said.

Knox was the 159th speaker for the Dillon Lecture

Knox describes how each tattoo has meaning to her during the press conference before her lecture began. She was the 159th speaker for the Dillon Lecture Series. During her lecture, Knox paused and looked at her daughter’s stroller that sat next to her husband in the front row. Knox recounted how she thought she’d never be a mom. Knox explains how she began to restart her life after her wrongful conviction was overturned. One of the most important steps in healing was meeting her husband.

Series. The series is a local lecture series dedicated to the students of HutchCC and the community. Robin Woodworth, Administrative Assistant to the HutchCC President, is also the coordinator for the Dillon Lecture Series. When reviewing potential speaker names, someone on the committee said Amanda Knox.

“I think because they felt like she had an interesting story to tell, and that she was a name that people would recognize. And she was in our budget,” said Woodworth. “I think it was just something different.”

When selecting speakers, Woodworth commented on how the committee tries to closely follow the series mission statement. The committee looks for four lecturers each year, with two per semester.

“If your plan is for one year, plant rice; for 10 years, plant trees; for 100 years, educate men.’ So basically, it’s geared towards students to bring in something informative and educational,” said Woodworth about the series mission statement. “So that’s always our mission when we are selecting speakers.”

Although Knox’s case didn’t happen in America, she noted a few pieces of change she would like to see happen.

“People to become more media literate, and to understand what it is they’re consuming,” Knox said. “So that they can be the arbiters of what is valuable and what is not, and what is in the public interest and what is not.”

In order to help people become more media literate, especially those interested in true crime, Knox recommends her own podcast, “Labyrinths.”

“I worked really hard to find ways to articulate my experience. It has taken me a long time to do so. And I try to help other people establish what their story is, to understand what their experience means to them,” said Knox. Knox has implemented her story and experience into her everyday life by getting tattoos to help her remember a few of the good outcomes. “This is my recipe for success. When I am encountering someone who may have a differing opinion or idea than I do, the first step is to find common ground,” Knox said, “The second step is to steal man, the other person’s argument. [The third step is] having compassion and [the fourth step would] be willing to change.” Knox may have been convicted twice of murder but her convictions were overturned each time. Is it possible Meredith Kercher’s case was just in the hands of some hasty investigators looking for an easy to solve murder? Another man was eventually caught, tried and convicted for Kercher’s assault and murder after Knox was exonerated.

Crime Junkie is Knox’s favor- True Crime ite podcast 66 students surveyed 15%Enjoy listening to Crime Junkie 40%Learn about true crime from the news 53%Had never heard of Amanda Knox 9% Listen to 6-8 hours of true crime/week 11% Believe true crime dramatizes people’s lives 93% Think people can learn from true crime