Amanda Knox charged with police slander

Amanda Knox, the American student convicted of murdering her British housemate, Meredith Kercher, returned to court yesterday charged with slandering police officers in Perugia.

Twelve detectives brought the case against Knox, 23, after she claimed they beat her during questioning after Ms Kercher's killing in the central Italian city in 2007. Knox's parents, Curt Knox and Edda Mellas, are due to stand trial separately in July for repeating the claims in a newspaper interview.

Dressed in a long, white shirt and black trousers, Knox told Judge Daniele Cenci that she understood Italian, before the trial was adjourned until November 15.

Knox and her ex-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito are currently appealing against 26-year and 25-year sentences respectively for the sex attack in which Ms Kercher's throat was cut. The next appeal hearing is on Saturday. A third person, Rudy Guede, who is serving 16 years for the killing, has already exhausted the appeals process.