An Italian court cleared 24 year-old American Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend of murdering British student Meredith Kercher in 2007 and set them free after nearly four years in prison for a crime they always denied committing.

Here is a timeline of the main events In the case:

November 2, 2007 - Kercher's body is found with a stab wound in the throat, in the apartment she shared with American student Knox in the central Italian town of Perugia.

November 6 - Knox, Sollecito, and bar owner Patrick Diya Lumumba are questioned by Italian police.

November 19 - Police say they are seeking a fourth suspect, named as Rudy Hermann Guede, from Ivory Coast. He is arrested the next day in the German city of Mainz. On the same day Lumumba is released without charge from prison in Rome.

April 1, 2008 - Knox, Sollecito and Guede lose their appeals to be released from prison and are told they will stay behind bars until they are charged or released.

October 28, 2008 - Guede is sentenced to 30 years in jail for taking part in Kercher's murder. His sentence is cut back to 16 years on appeal in 2009.

- Judge Paolo Micheli also orders Knox and Sollecito to stand trial on murder charges.

January 16, 2009 - Trial of Knox and Sollecito begins.

December 5 - A court sentences Knox to 26 years in prison and Sollecito to 25 years after they are found guilty of murdering Kercher during a drunken sex assault.

- Lawyers for Knox and Sollecito say they will appeal the sentences and Knox's family denounces the verdict as a failure of the Italian judicial system.

November 8, 2010 - An Italian court orders Knox to stand trial for slandering police officers during the murder investigation.

November 24, 2010 - Knox and Sollecito's appeal against their convictions starts and is adjourned. It resumes on December 11.

December 16 - Guede's conviction is confirmed by Italy's highest appeals court.

June 29, 2011 - An independent forensic report discredits police evidence used to help convict Knox.

July 25 - Two court-appointed experts, Carla Vecchiotti and Stefano Conti, tell an appeal hearing the knife thought to have been used to kill Kercher carried no trace of blood but may have been contaminated with other DNA traces.

September 24 - Prosecutors ask the court to keep Knox and Sollecito behind bars for life.

September 26 - Patrick Lumumba's lawyer Carlo Pacelli calls Knox a she-devil and tells the appeals court she destroyed Lumumba's image by falsely accusing him of the murder, testimony that helps prosecutors attack her credibility. Knox has said she wrongly implicated Lumumba under pressure from police.

September 29 - Wrapping up the defense case, Knox's lawyer Carlo Dalla Vedova points to errors in the probe by police and urges a panel of lay and professional judges to look beyond the image of Knox created by the media and the prosecution.

October 3 - Knox makes a tearful plea to be acquitted of murdering her British roommate, saying she was paying with her life for a crime she did not commit.

-- Two professional and six lay judges find Knox and Sollecito not guilty of murder.

-- The court upholds a conviction against Knox for slander, after she had falsely accused Lumumba of the murders. It sentenced her to three years in prison, a sentence which has now been served.

American university student Amanda Knoxs mother Edda reacts as she leaves the Perugia jail after visiting Knox in Perugia
American university student Amanda Knox's mother Edda reacts as she leaves the Perugia jail after visiting Knox in Perugia December 5, 2009. Reuters
Amanda Knoxs mother Edda Mellas cries in Perugias court after the verdict was read
Amanda Knox's mother Edda Mellas cries in Perugia's court after the verdict was read October 3, 2011. Reuters
U.S. student Amanda Knox reacts after hearing the verdict during her appeal trial session in Perugia
U.S. student Amanda Knox reacts after hearing the verdict during her appeal trial session in Perugia October 3, 2011. Reuters
British student Meredith Kerchers family members, from L-R mother Arline, sister Stephanie and brother Lyle attend a news conference in Perugia
British student Meredith Kercher's family members, (from L-R) mother Arline, sister Stephanie and brother Lyle attend a news conference in Perugia October 3, 2011. Reuters
Amanda Knox, the U.S. student convicted of murdering her British flatmate Meredith Kercher in Italy on November 2007, reacts during her appeal trial session in Perugia
Amanda Knox, the U.S. student convicted of murdering her British flatmate Meredith Kercher in Italy on November 2007, reacts during her appeal trial session in Perugia September 23, 2011. Reuters
Amanda Knox, the U.S. student convicted of killing her British flatmate Meredith Kercher in Italy on November 2007, smiles during a break at her appeal trial session in Perugia
Amanda Knox, the U.S. student convicted of killing her British flatmate Meredith Kercher in Italy on November 2007, smiles during a break at her appeal trial session in Perugia September 5, 2011. Reuters
Amanda Knox, the U.S. student convicted of killing her British flatmate in Italy three years ago, attends a trial session in Perugia
Amanda Knox, the U.S. student convicted of killing her British flatmate in Italy three years ago, attends a trial session in Perugia July 25, 2011. Reuters
Raffaele Sollecito, the Italian student convicted of killing his British flatmate in Italy three years ago, waves as he returns to the courtroom after a break during a trial session in Perugia
Raffaele Sollecito, the Italian student convicted of killing his British flatmate in Italy three years ago, waves as he returns to the courtroom after a break during a trial session in Perugia March 12, 2011. Reuters
Amanda Knox, the U.S. student convicted of killing her British flatmate in Italy three years ago, sits in the courtroom after a break during a trial session in Perugia
Amanda Knox, the U.S. student convicted of killing her British flatmate in Italy three years ago, sits in the courtroom after a break during a trial session in Perugia March 12, 2011. Reuters
Amanda Knox, the U.S. student convicted of killing her British flatmate in Italy three years ago, returns to the courtroom after a break during a trial session in Perugia
Amanda Knox, the U.S. student convicted of killing her British flatmate in Italy three years ago, returns to the courtroom after a break during a trial session in Perugia December 11, 2010. Reuters
Amanda Knox, the U.S. student convicted of killing her British flatmate in Italy three years ago, leaves the court following a trial session in Perugia
Amanda Knox, the U.S. student convicted of killing her British flatmate in Italy three years ago, leaves the court following a trial session in Perugia November 24, 2010. Reuters
British student Meredith Kerchers family members, from L brother Lyle, mother Arline and sister Sthepanie arrive for a news conference following the verdict of the murder trial session that found American student Amanda Knox guilty in Perugia
British student Meredith Kercher's family members, (from L) brother Lyle, mother Arline and sister Sthepanie arrive for a news conference following the verdict of the murder trial session that found American student Amanda Knox guilty in Perugia December 5, 2009. Reuters
American student Amanda Knox C, a suspect in the murder of British student Meredith Kercher last year, arrives with penitentiary police to a court hearing in Perugia
American student Amanda Knox (C), a suspect in the murder of British student Meredith Kercher last year, arrives with penitentiary police to a court hearing in Perugia September 16, 2008. Reuters
American university student Amanda Knox C and her Italian ex-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito R are escorted into courtroom during their murder trial session in Perugia
American university student Amanda Knox (C) and her Italian ex-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito (R) are escorted into courtroom during their murder trial session in Perugia December 3, 2009. Reuters
Amanda Knox reacts in the courtroom during a murder trial session in Perugia
Amanda Knox reacts in the courtroom during a murder trial session in Perugia November 30, 2009. Reuters
Jailed suspect Amanda Knox sits in the courtroom during a break in her murder trial session in Perugia
Jailed suspect Amanda Knox sits in the courtroom during a break in her murder trial session in Perugia November 21, 2009. Reuters
Jailed murder suspect Amanda Knox of the U.S. attends her trial for murder in Perugia
Jailed murder suspect Amanda Knox of the U.S. attends her trial for murder in Perugia June 13, 2009. Reuters
Jailed murder suspect Amanda Knox of the U.S. gives evidence at her trial for murder in Perugia
Jailed murder suspect Amanda Knox of the U.S. gives evidence at her trial for murder in Perugia June 12, 2009. Reuters
Jailed suspect Amanda Knox R, 21, arrives for her murder trial session at a court in Perugia
Jailed suspect Amanda Knox (R), 21, arrives for her murder trial session at a court in Perugia April 23, 2009. Reuters
A combination photo shows jailed murder suspects Raffaele Sollecito L and Amanda Knox entering a trial session in Perugia
A combination photo shows jailed murder suspects Raffaele Sollecito (L) and Amanda Knox entering a trial session in Perugia February 7, 2009. Reuters
Italian murder suspect Raffaele Sollecito attends his trial for the murder of British student Meredith Kercher in Perugia
Italian murder suspect Raffaele Sollecito attends his trial for the murder of British student Meredith Kercher in Perugia January 16, 2009. Reuters
U.S. murder suspect Amanda Knox arrives at her trial for the murder of British student Meredith Kercher in Perugia
U.S. murder suspect Amanda Knox arrives at her trial for the murder of British student Meredith Kercher in Perugia January 16, 2009. Reuters
A combination photo shows Amanda Knox of the U.S. L and Italian national Raffaele Sollecito, suspects in the murder of British student Meredith Kercher last year, arriving with penitentiary police to a court hearing in Perugia
A combination photo shows Amanda Knox of the U.S. (L) and Italian national Raffaele Sollecito, suspects in the murder of British student Meredith Kercher last year, arriving with penitentiary police to a court hearing in Perugia September 26, 2008. Reuters
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