Parents deny daughter's role in death

LONDON, Sept. 15 (UPI) -- The parents of a U.S. coed say their daughter played no role in the death of Leeds University exchange student Meredith Kercher in Italy last year.

In their first interview for British television, Curt Knox and Edda Mellas defended daughter Amanda Knox and said she has been cruelly misrepresented since her arrest, The Daily Telegraph reported Monday.

"Just looking at her face on TV … you could tell she was literally in shock," Mellas said during an interview with ITV scheduled for broadcast Monday night.

Knox, 21, is accused along with Raffaele Sollecito, 24, and Rudy Hermann Guede, 21, of killing Kercher in Perugia last November during what detectives charge was a sex game among roommates.

A hearing is scheduled Tuesday to decide whether the three will face trial.

All three have denied sexually assaulting Kercher and slitting her throat.