Sister pays tribute as Meredith Kercher's family prepare to come face-to-face with accused

Murdered British student Meredith Kercher's family will come face to face with the three people accused of her brutal murder on Tuesday.

Meredith, 21, was found semi-naked and with her throat cut in the bedroom of her student house almost a year ago.

Within days of her death police arrested her American flatmate Amanda Knox, 21, Knox's American boyfriend Rafael Sollecito, 24 and bar owner Patrick Lumumba, 38.

Lumumba was later released without charge.  Police then arrested Ivory Coast born basketball player Rudy Hermann Guede, 21 and he, along with Knox and Sollecito,  have been held on suspicion of her murder.

On Tuesday a court in Perugia will begin a pre-trial review behind closed doors to see if there is enough evidence for the case to proceed or if it should be dropped and the three released.

It will be the first time that Meredith's parents John and Arline and her sister Stephanie will have seen all three at the same time,  and also the first time all accused have been together.

On Monday Stephanie, who looks uncannily like her sister, said in a statement: 'Each time that we arrive in Perugia we wish it was for a different reason.

'It is so easy to understand why Meredith chose this beautiful city. She loved everything about Italy but the fact that she chose Perugia over other cities shows how important the year abroad was to her.

'We only wish she had had more time before she was brutally taken from us.

'We are pleased that we have reached a new phase in the process, hoping that justice will soon be done for Meredith.'

The Kercher family: father John, sister Stephanie, and mother Arline at a press conference on Monday, paying tribute to Meredith

Judge Paolo Micheli is also expected to listen to requests from lawyers representing all three that they be given bail pending the start of the full trial against them.

Guede's lawyers will also formally request that the hearing against their client be held as a separate fast track process as they fear a pact against him by Knox and Sollecito.

Meredith Kercher was found semi-naked with her throat cut almost a year ago

Yesterday Guede's lawyer Valter Biscotti released a letter that that his client had written from prison where he stressed his innocence and said the only thing he was 'guilty of' was not saving Meredith's life.

Guede has always admitted being in the house the night she was killed and said that he had been in the bathroom listening to his iPod when he heard Meredith screaming.

When he came out he saw a male figure rushing away who shouted at him: 'Black man found, black man guilty,' while Meredith lay on the floor dying.

Guede said in his letter: 'I can't find peace with myself because I am guilty of not doing what should have been done to save her and I pray to God that justice will be had for her.'

He also repeated his lawyer's fears of a pact between Knox and Sollecito and said: 'It's easier for them to point the finger at me than at themselves because in their world that is what comes naturally rather than admitting your responsibilities.

'Too many lies have been said about me, lies from certain individuals that make it clear to me that they want things hidden, they don't want things to come out.'

He added: 'I have been described as a drug dealer and a drug addict and ask myself what the next thing I will be accused of is. Terrorism?'

Two of the three suspects: Rudy Guede and Amanda Knox, both of whom protest their innocence

All three suspects have been held in Perugia's Capanne jail and all deny murder, sexual violence and theft and tampering with evidence.

The Kercher family refused to comment on what they thought of the police investigation into Meredith's death.

Since the murder last November there have been various leaks and there has been a growing element of criticism that it was botched.

Italian media have speculated that the police were to quick to close the case and make arrests.

To date the murder weapon has not been found, none of the three has confessed and no real motive has been established.

The police are basing their case on DNA evidence found at the scene and the fact that Knox and Sollecito have constantly changed their version of events.

Changing stories: Amanda Knox and her Italian boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito

Guede's DNA was found at the scene on a pillow and on a piece of toilet paper putting him there the night she died.

Police say they also have Knox's DNA on the handle of a knife compatible with wounds on Meredith's throat.

They also have a fibre of Meredith's bloodstained bra which they say has DNA on it from Sollecito.