Amanda Knox broke down in tears after the appeal verdict was read acquitting her of the murder of Meredith Kercher in 2007. Knox and Sollecito were convincted in 2008 of sexually assaulting Kercher and stabbing her to death. Knox was sentenced to 26 years in prison while Sollecito was sentenced to 25 years in jail. Both have continued to maintain their innocence throughout the four years they have spent in jail.

Outside of the courthouse in Perugia, Italy, some of those gathered to hear the Amanda Knox verdict shouted out “Shame, shame!” at the news of her acquittal.

I’ve lost a friend in the worst, most brutal, most inexplicable way possible,” Amanda Knox told the jury in her appeal trial about the 2007 murder of Meredith Kercher, a 21-year-old student she lived with in Perugia. “I’m paying with my life for things that I didn’t do.”

Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito were convicted in 2009 of sexually assaulting Meredith Kercher and stabbing her to death. Both Knox and Sollecito have maintained they are innocent of the crimes for which they were convicted. “I never hurt anyone, never in my life,” Sollecito said during the appeal trial.

Meredith Kercher’s family, who wanted the original guilty verdict upheld for Knox and Sollecito, comforted each other when the acquital was announced. Stephanie Kercher, the victim’s sister, said in a press statement before the verdict that the family still believes in Knox’s guilt.

Court officials have announced the jury in the Amanda Knox appeal trial has reached a verdict. Depending on what the jury has decided, convicted murderer Amanda Knox could go free today or back to an Italian prison to serve out the rest of her 26 year sentence.

Six jurors and two judges will announce their decision on the Amanda Knox verdict this afternoon around 3:30PM ET. Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend and co-defendant Raffaele Sollecito have reportedly been returned to the court house to await the verdict.

* Watch the Amanda Knox verdict live stream video here *

Both Knox and Sollecito spoked passionately to the judges and jury of their claims of innocence in the death of Knox’s roommate Meredith Kercher in 2007. The two have spent the past four years in prison for after being convicted of Kercher’s murder.

“I want to go home. I want to go back to my life. I don’t want to be punished… I don’t want my future taken away from me for something I didn’t do because I am innocent,” Amanda Knox told the jury during her appeal trial. “I’m not a promiscuous vamp. I’m not violent … I have not killed, I have not raped, I was not there, I was not present.” Knox said.

“At the end of the day, every single day in prison is like death,” Sollecito said in his plea to the jury.

Both Sollecito and Knox claim it was a local drifter, Rudy Guede, who was the sole killer of Meredith Kercher. Guede was convicted seperately and sentenced to 16 years in prison.

Convicted murdered Amanda Knox will find out today whether she will be released to go home to her family in America, or continue to serve out her life in an Italian prison. Her supporters are anxiously watching the Amanda Knox verdict live stream to find out if she will be freed at last. The family of Meredith Kercher, who Knox was convicted of murdering, hopes the jury will not overturn Knox’s conviction.

I’ve lost a friend in the worst, most brutal, most inexplicable way possible,” Amanda Knox told the jury in her appeal trial about the 2007 murder of Meredith Kercher, a 21-year-old student she lived with in Perugia. “I’m paying with my life for things that I didn’t do.”

Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito were convicted in 2009 of sexually assaulting Meredith Kercher and stabbing her to death. Both Knox and Sollecito have maintained they are innocent of the crimes for which they were convicted. I never hurt anyone, never in my life,” Sollecito told the jury in Amanda Knox’s appeal trial on Monday.

Amanda Knox live stream video

Meredith Kercher’s family hopes the jury will return with a verdict upholding the original conviction of Amanda Knox for murder. “As long as they decide today based purely on the information available to them and they don’t look into the media hype, I think justice will be found,” the victim’s sister, Stephanie Kercher, said in a press statement.

>> Watch a live stream outside the Italian courthouse where the verdict will be read

Knox insists it could have just as easily been her who was murdered instead of Meredith Kercher. She had her bedroom next to mine, she was killed in our own apartment. If I had been there that night, I would be dead,” Knox said. “But I was not there… I did not kill. I did not rape. I did not steal. I wasn’t there,” Knox said.

The legal teams for Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito claim that a third party, Rudy Hermann Guede, was the sole murderer of Meredith Kercher. Guede was convicted in a seperate trial and sentenced to only 16 years in prison.