Location: Perugia, Umbria, Italy 🇮🇹

Date: November 1, 2007

🕊️Meredith’s Early Life:

✨ Birth: Meredith Susanna Cara Kercher arrived into the world on December 28, 1985, in Southwark, South London, and grew up in Coulsdon, located in South London.

Family Life: Meredith was the youngest of four children born to British journalist father, John Kercher and her mother, Arline Kercher was a homemaker. She had two older brothers, John and Lyle, and an older sister, Stephanie.

Education: She attended the Old Palace School, which is an independent school in Croydon, South London, before going on to study European Politics and Italian at the University of Leeds.

Childhood Activities & Hobbies: Growing up, she practiced ballet and took up karate in her teens, eventually earning her third belt. She loved reading, writing poetry and stories, had a great sense of humor. Family memories also recalled her enthusiasm for holidays like Halloween, where she would make homemade costumes and decorations.

Early Connection to Italy 🇮🇹:

Possessing a deep love Italian culture, she had spent time living with a host family in Italy during her youth. She aspired to have a career working for the European Union or as a journalist.

Time in Perugia: In October 2007, she moved to Perugia, Italy, as part of a University exchange program to study modern history, political theory, and cinema at the University of Perugia. She lived a four-bedroom cottage on Via Della Pergola 7 with flatmates, including Amanda Knox. Friends frequently described Meredith as caring, intelligent, witty, and deeply well-liked.

Death: November 1, 2007

Location: Perugia, Italy

Unfortunately, this is the part where I have to discuss her murder. Le sigh. 😔

November 2007: Complete Timeline

1. Evening: Meredith spent the evening having dinner at the home of some English friends.
2. ~8:45 PM- 9:00PM: She parted ways with her friends to walk back to her apartment on Via Della Pergola 7, which was a short walk away.
3. ~ 9:00 PM: She was captured heading home and attempted a brief call to her mother (which did not connect). This is believed to be around the time she arrived back at the cottage.
4. Night: Forensic estimates and legal proceedings generally point to her being murdered late on the night of November 1, with medical and forensic timelines estimating the attack occurred roughly between 9:00 PM and 11:30 PM.

November 2, 2007:

Morning: Amanda Knox returned to the cottage from her boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito’s house and noticed the front door open, drops of blood in the bathroom, and Meredith’s bedroom door locked.

~ 12:00 PM-12:30 PM: After returning with Sollecito, they flagged down postal police who were already in the area handling a different call, reporting an apparent break-in because the window in another flatmate’s was broken.

~ 1: 15 PM: Concerned that Meredith was not answering her locked door, the authorities and flatmates had the door forced open. Meredith Kercher was found dead inside her bedroom, having suffered severe knife wounds to the neck.

The Suspects & Rudy Guede:

While the media circus quickly fixated on Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito, physical evidence at the scene led directly to a man named Rudy Guede.

Guede’s DNA, fingerprints, and bloody palm print were recovered from Meredith’s bedroom and belongings. He fled to Germany shortly after the crime but was extradited back to Italy, where he was eventually convicted of Meredith’s murder in a fast-track trial.

Despite the endless headlines surrounding other names, Guede was the only individual whose forensic footprint definitely placed in the room at the time of the assault.

Final Thoughts 💭 I was awfully young when this happened and as I got older I always say that Amanda Knox’s name glued to this case. In which I understand why now that I have looked it up….

However, I feel like they just got lost on the actual person who this story is about. Yesterday I had Googled Amanda and it seems like she has made a stand-up comedy special about this case? It was very weird. I get that being wrongfully accused is pretty heavy, and it wasn’t fair.

Often times in situations like this I’d imagine that the emotional impact of seeing a gruesome murder to be being wrongfully accused and convicted. It’s also another thing to make this the focal point of comedy.

For that I must say… fuck Amanda Knox. I couldn’t care less about her.

And Finally..🕊️🤍

What a vicious crime this was. I’ll never understand why people make the choices that they make, but it’s very frustrating and sad.

Meredith had her whole life ahead of her and she didn’t even get a chance to fulfill her dreams, goals, and life in general. May we always remember and cherish Meredith.

Rest In Peace, Meredith! You will forever be remembered 🤍🕊️

Until next time! 🔍💙 L.W.