Experts question evidence used in trial of American for Italian murder

ROME -- Amanda Knox won a crucial legal victory Wednesday as an independent forensic report said that much of the DNA evidence used to convict the American student and her co-defendant in the murder of her roommate is unreliable and possibly contaminated.

The review's findings that DNA testing used in the first trial was below international standards will undoubtedly boost Knox's chances of overturning her murder conviction.

The review by the two court-appointed independent experts had been eagerly awaited: With no clear motive for the murder of Meredith Kercher and contradicting testimony heard in court, the DNA evidence was key to the prosecution's case.

Knox was convicted in 2009 of sexually assaulting and murdering Kercher -- a Briton with whom she shared an apartment while both were exchange students in Perugia -- and sentenced to 26 years in prison. Her co-defendant and ex-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito was also convicted and sentenced to 25 years.

Both have denied wrongdoing and are appealing. A verdict in the appeals trial is expected in the fall.

Knox, a 23-year-old from Seattle, was "very happy" to hear about the review, her mother said.

"She's breathing for the first time in years," Edda Mellas said.

But, she added, "We're not celebrating until Amanda walks out of jail."

"We've been waiting for three years for this," Knox attorney Luciano Ghirga said. "It finally came."