Amanda Knox Vigil Is Combination of 'Dread and Hope' as Murder Appeal Nears End

Amanda Knox Vigil Is Combination of 'Dread and Hope' as Murder Appeal Nears End

Amanda Knox attends her appeal hearing to reconsider her guilty verdict in the murder of Meredith Kercher, at Perugia's Court of Appeal, Perugia, Italy, Sept. 5, 2011.

Amanda Knox's bright yellow bedroom in her suburban Seattle home awaits her just as she left it four years ago. In the room is her guitar and boxes of letters she mailed her family from her Italian prison cell.

Knox and her family are trying to not be too excited, but they are hopeful that Knox may be days away from freedom and an emotional homecoming as her appeal heads into its final days. Summations in the case are scheduled to begin Friday.

Knox's step-father, Chris Mellas, has lived in the outskirts of Perugia for most of the past year. The imminent decision whether or not Knox will be acquitted weighs heavily on him.

"It's really hard to describe. It's a combination of dread and hope... the thought that this can finally end or it can kick us in the teeth again. It's impossible to explain," Mellas told ABC News.

Knox's father, Curt Knox, says his daughter's frame of mind is calm, but she appears "jittery and nervous" as she awaits the decision that will decide her future.

It's been four years since a 20 year-old Knox set off to Perugia, Italy, to learn Italian while studying abroad. Her dream quickly turned into a nightmare when she became a suspect in the murder of her English roommate Meredith Kercher.

Knox let a moan and desperate, "Nooo" when she and her ex-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito were convicted of murder in 2009. She was sentenced to 26 years and Sollecito to 25 years.

But today Knox and her family can't help but day dream of what they will do if Knox is home soon. Her family says first she will simply enjoy seeing her family and friends, peace and quiet and the simple luxury of "doing what she wants, when she want to."

"She wants to catch up on Harry Potter movies, use a telephone freely, lie in the grass in her backyard and eat a home-cooked breakfast," said Mellas.

Knox's mother, Edda Mellas, is packing her suitcase for what she hopes is her final 6,000 mile trip from Seattle to Perugia. She says lately she has not been able to sleep and often wakes up from dreams of wondering what will happen to Amanda.

"We're hopeful, but we are not going to celebrate until she walks out. But I definitely think all of us feel like this could be the end of the nightmare," Mellas told ABC News.

It's a nightmare that began in November 2007 when Knox and Sollecito were arrested weeks a after her arrival for the brutal murder of Kercher.

The arrest was followed by a year long trial that culminated in their convictions in December 2009. Her conviction was compounded by the proliferation of books and movies depicting her life.

But this summer Knox's appeal brings new hope for her freedom. A court appointed panel of two experts concluded that key DNA evidence used in their convictions was improperly handled, was likely contaminated and should not have been entered as evidence.

In addition, the testimony of a homeless man who placed them in the vicinity of the murder came under fire during their appeal and he contradicted himself.

Final arguments in the appeal begin Friday and a verdict that could possibly free Knox is expected in the first week of October.

From day one, Knox and her family have insisted she is innocent. Her family's support is remarkable. They have collectively made nearly 100 trips to Perugia to visit her for one hour twice a week, the allowed prison visitations.

The anticipation of the appeal verdict is difficult for Curt Knox. "The light has always been on at the end of the tunnel, and now it's shining even brighter. We could be a week to two weeks away from bringing her home. The hope is really there now, but we have to try to stem it a little bit."

In a recent prison visit, Knox posed the question to her father, "What are the top 10 things you want to do when I get home?" Curt Knox says he took the question as a good sign, adding, "On that list is finally celebrating [Knox's] 21st birthday."

Knox, 24, has spent four birthdays, four Christmases and college graduation behind bars. She has also missed the milestones of her sisters, Deanna, 22, and her half-sisters, Ashley, 16, and Delaney, 13.

Amanda Knox Family Hopeful She Will Soon Be Freed

Edda Mellas feels her oldest daughter's absence. "I miss having Amanda around and having her here for all the family gatherings and barbecues. Every time we get together there's always somebody missing, we are acutely aware that she is not there."

Knox's family has always remained "cautiously optimistic," but Curt Knox now says he dares to be "very hopeful."

This international legal drama took a drastic turn for Knox and Sollecito this summer during their appeal.

Two court-appointed independent experts reviewed two key pieces of evidence in the case. One crucial piece of evidence is Kercher's bra clasp, allegedly with Sollecito's DNA on the hook, that was collected six weeks after the murder. The second is a kitchen knife found at Sollecito's apartment. The prosecution claims it's the murder weapon and has Kercher's DNA on the blade and Knox's on the handle.

After a three month review, the independent experts concluded that the evidence was likely contaminated and testing results were inconclusive.

The independent experts also scolded prosecutors for the way they handled the DNA evidence.

During the appeal, they played video of the crime scene collection after explaining basic evidence collection standards: place evidence in paper, not plastic bags, change gloves frequently and gently swab for DNA, don't rub.

As the video showed evidence placed in plastic bags, gloves not changed and cotton swabs rubbing surfaces, some spectators gasped in horror while others laughed.

Most notable was the collection of the bra clasp, already controversial because it was collected six weeks after the murder. The video showed forensic police picking up the clasp, handing it to one another, placing it back on the floor, photographing it and then picking it up again.

The independent experts said the substance on the knife blade was starch, specifically rye bread, not Kercher's DNA. They argued that the amount of DNA was too minuscule to have been tested in the first place.

The prosecution has also failed to provide a clear motive or an explanation for the absence of Knox's DNA in Kercher's bedroom where the gruesome crime occurred.

The DNA evidence does point to Rudy Guede, a drifter who was convicted of taking part in the crime during a separate trial. His DNA was found on the victim's body, his bloody hand prints on the wall above her, and his fingerprints on her purse.

Guede, who claims he's innocent, admits he was in the bedroom that night, and initially told police Knox and Sollecito were not present. Months later, he changed his story and said they were there. Guede is serving a 16 year sentence.

Knox's life lies in the hands of a new panel of Italian judges and jurors who have heard her appeal, along with Sollecito's. The possible outcomes of their appeal are an acquittal, sentence reduction, confirmation of trial sentence or an increased sentence to life in prison. The prosecution also appealed after the trial sentence, asking for life in prison.

If Knox's conviction is overturned, she could be freed within hours.

 It's a thought Edda Mellas can't resist. "When Amanda comes home it will mean that our family can go back to just having a normal life. We will never be the same and our lives will never be the same, but we will focus on getting a new life and a new set of routines in place to keep moving forward."

As prices soar, a new gold rush emerges in the West

As prices soar, a new gold rush emerges in the West

Liberty, Washington (CNN) -- Pirates, Spanish conquistadors and James Bond movie supervillains have all searched, schemed and even killed for it.

Gold.

And along a gurgling stream in Washington state, Bob Gustafson, a retired grandfather of three, squeezes into his wetsuit to join the long history of people hunting for the precious metal.

For Gustafson, prospecting falls somewhere between a hobby and a pipe dream. It's an activity he enjoys but one that also could someday bring riches. Meet the new face of gold prospecting.

"You got people who are retired who are out here, that's what they do for a living now, they go around and dig for gold," Gustafson explained as he fired up his dredge, a noisy, generator-powered pump he used to suck up sediment from the river bed.

He later dried the soil and painstakingly sifted the material for small flakes of gold.

Gustafson dreams of finding "nuggets," the chunks of gold that other prospectors still sometimes discover in this mountain-ringed valley, a century after the first prospectors arrived here.

A few minutes into the dredging, Gustafson points out what he calls "the color" or small gold flakes glinting back at him from the sediment.

"If you get in a good area and find some pieces you can find an ounce fairly fast," he said.

That ounce can bring gold hunters as much as $1,800. Pumped up gold prices and the popularity of reality TV shows on prospecting fuel what Chris Brawn calls "the new Gold Rush."

A fifth-generation miner, Brawn said he would prospect regardless of the price of gold. Already Brawn is busy instructing the next generation, his son, in the family trade.

"He started at 3 years old and learned to stand looking in the dredge, getting gold," Brawn said, ever the proud father.

Brawn teaches amateur prospectors how to find gold and sells them the gear and rents them access to the "claims," the land where they can try their hand at mining.

He said he has seen a sharp increase in clients as the price of gold skyrocketed.

"The most common question I get is, 'What's the biggest piece of gold you have ever found?" Brawn said with a wide grin. "The next one is, 'Where is the gold?' "

Even if they don't know immediately how to find or excavate the gold, Brawn said his students are serious about prospecting.

"They are trying to make a living at this," he said. "Some people do, some people don't but there's a lot of color left out there."

Like many prospectors, Brawn rejects charges made by some environmentalists that prospectors damage the natural surroundings where they hunt for gold.

Brawn said miners often pull trash from rivers and leave areas cleaner than they found them.

Prospectors, he said, worry they are getting a bad rap and are concerned about movements in several states to ban some of the techniques small miners use.

According to Brawn, prospecting is no longer just for "old, gnarly miners," the hardscrabble frontiersmen who settled the lawless wilderness during the 1800s.

Gold mining, Brawn said, has become a family outing in the tough economy, a way to get kids outdoors and generate a little extra income.

"People have lost their second homes or can't afford to fly to their time shares. They're looking at this as their next vacation," Brawn said. "It's a great way to get out of the office, get your phones turned off and get in the creek with your family."

Asked about the pistol he carried in his shoulder holster, Brawn gives "a no big deal" shrug.

"That's just for the bears and cougars," he explained.

On a recent weekend, novice and expert prospectors gathered in a field near one of Brawn's claims for a "Miners Rally" held by the Washington Prospectors Mining Association.

Under the pine trees, metal detector experts conducted workshops, teenagers raced each other in sediment-sifting competitions and prospectors swapped the latest intelligence on where to find the gold.

Soaking up the atmosphere were Sandy and Jeff Smith, a retired couple just starting to prospect.

Sandy's reasons for wanting to prospect included a love for the outdoors and not wanting to "sit around the campsite knitting."

Her husband Jeff's answer was more complicated and involved the London Stock Exchange, Chinese government and various international conspiracies.

"There's a huge demand for gold at this point because it's stable," Smith said "Paper money looks like its on the way out. People just don't have confidence in it anymore."

The couple's hadn't found much gold so far but, they said, were still enthusiastic prospectors.

"I'd rather spend time doing this kind of hard work than other kind of hard work," Sandy said. "Even if it just pays for the gas."

Veteran miner Andy Herndon also took in the rally, his left hand tightly clutching two gold nuggets he estimated were worth thousands of dollars.

He and his mining partner found them, he said, after breaking and sifting tunnel walls of a century old mine. The gold pieces are smooth and cool to the touch with a nice weight to them.

Herndon said to take advantage of the record high gold prices and sell the nuggets now would be a sweet reward.

But nothing, he said, compared to the moment a prospector feels when he first spots "the color."

"Find a $5,000 nugget and that's quite a thrill," Herndon said. "Time to go to town and have a drink."

Will the Austrians, Slovaks or Dutch break the euro?

Will the Austrians, Slovaks or Dutch break the euro?

German Chancellor Angela Merkel (L) and Finland's Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen inspects the guard of honour before their meeting at the Chancellery in Berlin on September 13 , 2011.

(CNN) -- French banks were the center of the European financial storm this week, after Societe Generale and Credit Agricole were downgraded by ratings agency Moody's Investors Service. Eyes were also on the unfolding drama of Italy's surging funding costs, amid warnings the country is one which is too big to fail. At the same time, members of the Free Democrats -- the smaller party in Angela Merkel's governing coalition -- are openly flirting with a more Eurosceptic line.

But there is an aspect of Europe's debt crisis not receiving sufficient attention -- the dangers of a major political rupture, driven by the smaller, stability-oriented European countries. Politicians in the continent's big countries have been riding roughshod not just over the preferences of their own electorates -- the citizens and governments in Finland, Slovakia, the Netherlands, and Austria are increasingly questioning the rationale for writing ever larger cheques in exchange for empty-sounding promises of future fiscal rectitude from Southern member countries.

New bailout packages follows a familiar script: Austerity targets are missed (again); financial markets wobble; the EU initially vacillates. Then, German and French leaders meet. Either to much fanfare, or behind the scenes, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French president Nicolas Sarkozy launch the next escalation of European rescue efforts. Of course, the bill has to be footed by all European member states, not just France and Germany. Franco-German "leadership" is creating growing unease in smaller countries. These political tensions are less visible than headline-grabbing stress in financial markets, but they are every bit as dangerous for the current European rescue efforts.

Smaller European countries are barely consulted when it comes to rescue packages. Especially in the highly competitive, fiscally responsible Northern states like Austria, Finland, and the Netherlands, feelings are running high. Finland already has the "True Finns" party. It ran on an anti-bailout platform at elections earlier this year, receiving 19% of the vote -- which makes it the largest opposition party. Even in opposition, it is already influencing policy. When the Finnish government recently insisted on collateral in exchange for further aid to Greece, plans for the second Greek bailout were thrown into turmoil. Austria and the Netherlands quickly insisted that they wanted equal treatment. Of course, a rescue in exchange for collateral is not much of a rescue at all.

This week, a poll showed that 92% of Austrians want Greece to leave the eurozone. Immediately afterwards, the three opposition parties -- the Greens, and the right-wing FPO and BZO -- engineered a delay in the ratification of an increased EU rescue fund, the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF). They refused to schedule a vote at the Austrian parliament's finance committee anytime soon, where the measure needs a two-thirds majority. The measure may still pass later, or in an emergency session, but the issue was enough to cause jitters on Wall Street. French bank shares plummeted on the news. In Slovakia, the junior partner in the governing coalition, the Freedom and Solidarity Party, wants to postpone the EFSF decision until December. It is receiving support from polls showing that fully one third of Slovaks are opposed to the new rescue fund.

These and similar tensions will continue to mount. Some EU politicians such as EU Commission President José Manuel Barroso are openly talking of turning the current crisis into Europe's "federal moment" -- an opportunity to introduce euro bonds, EU-wide taxes and an EU finance ministry. All these measures would lead to permanent fiscal transfers, mainly from Northern to Southern Europe. In a technical sense, this could solve the euro crisis -- Southern finances would look much better than today. And yet, it will not work, for political reasons. On a per capita basis, the electorates of smaller, rich Northern European countries would have to shoulder the same burden as Germans. Current decision-making leaves little time for consultation, which further marginalizes the smaller players.

The EU could try to reduce its notorious democratic deficit, by giving greater influence to the European Parliament. This would involve delegating more powers to Brussels, with more decisions based on a principle of "one man, one vote." Such a shift would permanently reduce the influence of the less populous states, whose votes would count for little in a more integrated Europe dominated by Germany, France, Italy, and Spain.

The EU has faced challenges in the past when big new measures, such as the EFSF, need to be ratified by all member states. Referenda sometimes yield the "wrong" answer -- Ireland voted against the Lisbon Treaty in 2008. The EU has dealt with these setbacks in its typical, anti-democratic mode, by scheduling new votes until the voters eventually give the "right" answer. Similar difficulties may well lie in wait for the EFSF. If and when a smaller member state stops the latest rescue package, there will be little or no room for manoeuvre. As this week's events make clear, markets will melt down much faster than new ways can be found to ignore increasingly Eurosceptic populations and parliamentary representatives in smaller member states.