Kercher man may face lone trial

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American student Amanda Knox arrives in court flanked by police guards

One of the three suspects held over the murder of British student Meredith Kercher will have a separate trial if indicted, an Italian judge has ruled.

The court agreed Ivory Coast citizen Rudy Guede would be tried separately from American Amanda Knox and her Italian boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito.

Miss Kercher, 21, from London, was found semi-naked with her throat slit in her Perugia flat on 1 November.

A second pre-trial hearing has been set for 26 September.

Mr Guede, 21, and Miss Knox, 21, attended Tuesday's pre-trial hearing but 24-year-old Mr Sollecito did not. All three deny sexual assault and murder.

It was the first time the suspects had come to face-to-face with Miss Kercher's family, who were also in court.

'Civil plaintiffs'

The judge has to decide if the prosecution has enough evidence to charge the trio.

Stephanie Kercher pays tribute to sister Meredith ahead of the hearing

There are likely to be several more pre-trial hearings and the Kercher family lawyer Francesco Maresco said any ruling would be unlikely until the end of October.

On Tuesday, judge Paolo Micheli granted a request for a fast-track trial for Mr Guede. This means no witnesses would be called and if found guilty, his sentence could potentially be reduced by up to a third under Italian law.

Cleared suspect Diya "Patrick" Lumumba, the Kercher family and the owner of the house where the murder happened have been admitted as civil plaintiffs by Judge Micheli - meaning they could eventually sue for damages, according to Mr Lumumba's lawyer Giuseppe Sereni.

Mr Lumumba is suing Miss Knox, saying she falsely implicated him in the murder.

Miss Kercher's parents John and Arline, and sister Stephanie, paid tribute to her on Monday in a statement read by Stephanie.

The family said: "Each time we arrive in Perugia, we wish we were here for a different reason."

Meredith trial reaches court

She described her sister as "a significant part of so many lives due to her caring, loving nature and laughter" and said the family was still struggling to understand why she was "so cruelly taken" from them.

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

Miss Kercher lived with Miss Knox and others on Via Della Pergola in Perugia, central Italy.

Miss Knox and Mr Sollecito have been in jail since November, while Mr Guede was arrested later in Germany and extradited to Italy in December.