If Italy asks the United States to extradite Amanda Knox, the decision will probably come down to Secretary of State John Kerry, and legal experts say it would be difficult for him to refuse the request.
Italy would probably wait until the appeals process plays out before asking the U.S. to expel her.
But Italy and the United States have an extradition treaty, and unless American authorities find clear evidence of a miscarriage of justice, legal experts say, it would be difficult for the U.S. to say no.
Marie Harf, a State Department spokeswoman, said that the department has followed the case closely, but she declined to address the prospect of extradition for Knox.
An extradition request would go first to the U.S. State Department.
It would review whether a treaty exists (it has since 1984), whether the crime is an extraditable offense (murder qualifies), and whether there are “any potential foreign policy problems.”
If the State Department decided that the request was proper, it would go to the Justice Department, which would check to see whether the request established probable cause that the American committed the crime — a relatively low bar to clear.
If the request cleared that hurdle, it would go to a federal judge, but the issue would be narrow: Did Italy follow all the rules and make a legitimate request?
It wouldn’t be an opportunity to retry the case.
If a judge failed to intervene, the extradition request would go back to the State Department and Kerry.
The appeal in Italy will probably take a year or more.
But if Knox loses in the country’s highest court and Kerry green-lights extradition, the final step would be for Italy to send agents to the United States to join federal marshals in picking her up.
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2014/01/31/22524338-why-us-might-send-amanda-knox-back-to-italy-if-she-loses-appeal