. >> preston would find himself at the door of the prosecutor's office here in pooirz perugia where heend a few minutes answering a few questions. >> i had never understood how brutal -- psychologically brutal an interrogation is. you feel absolutely helpless. >> and the chief interrogator was and is? >> giuliano mignini, this prosecutor, who isn't -- let me tell you something. he knows exactly what he's doing. >> giuliano mignini was the prosecutor for both the monster and the amanda knox cases. just like during amanda's interrogation, preston also says he was asked to imagine scenarios of how the crime could have occurred. >> i was terrified. i thought, these people have the power to put me in jail for the rest of my life. >> preston says he was questioned for two hours. he left the meeting and wrote everything down, including the time he went in and the time he left. which is why giuliano mignini's recollection of that meeting with preston is so puzzling. lasted about 20 minutes. no more than that. it was the first time i had met preston, no more than 20 minutes. >> i interviewed do

keith miller, nbc news, perugia. >> when we come back, son of sam, 35 years later. a look back at a serial killer': reign of terror. cc1: >>> police in norway revealed today that the man who confessed to killing 77 people told them he had more targets in mind, including the royal palace in oslo. authorities say anders breivik showed no emotion when they told him how many people he'd killed. >>> meantime, this weekend marks the 35th anniversary of the cc1: start of another infamous murder spree that took place in this country. it was the work of a serial killer known as the son of sam. for more than a year, his random string of killings and shootings virtually paralyzed the new yor: city area with fear. >> it was the mad man with the .44. a psychopath whose cryptic letters gave him a thrill and a name. the son of sam. between 1976 and 1977, he turned the streets of new york into his hunting ground. this week marks the 35th anniversary of his murder spree. the terror began in the early morning hours of july 29th, 1976. 18-year-old donna laurea who lived in this bronx

our elizabeth vargas is live in perugia, italy. latest in that. >> most hope she has had in years. >>> also, our "gma" exclusive. live interview with jaycee dugard's mom. how she coped with her daughter's 18 years in hiding. and how jayce jaycee's doing now, after sharing her story with the world in the last weeks. >> and her therapist, will be talking about how she is coping, too. >>> we begin with the amy winehouse story. still haven't pinpointed the exact cause of death. she had struguged with alcohol and drug addiction for years. let's go to abc's nick watt for the latest in london. good morning, nick. >> reporter: good morning, george. amy winehouse saw her doctor on friday. a regular checkup. no problem reported. saturday afternoon, she was found alone, dead in her bed here at her london home. she was found by her bodyguard who said that there was no drugs in the building at the time. medics believed she had been dead for some hours. right now, police are describing the death as unexplained. amy winehouse's distraught parents

elizabeth vargas brings us the very latest from perugia in our ongoing series "crime and punishment." >> reporter: it is a journey amanda k kx's mother, edda mellas, knows too well. >> i have lost count of how many times i've had to travel. >> reporter: shuttling back and forth, 6,000 miles between seattle and italy, to visit her daughter in the foreign prison she has called home for 3 1/2 years. but this week's visit was different. for the first time knox was brimming with hope after a drastic turn of events in her epic legal drama. >> she talked about how w od a day it was. she did talk about things she wants to do when she gets out. so i think that's a positive sign. >> reporter: in 2007 knox was transformed overnight from a fresh-faced student into an international murder suspect after her arrest in the gruesome stabbing of her british roommate, meredith kercher. the tabloids labeled her foxy knoxy. >> [ speaking foreign language ]. >> reporter: during the trial the prosecutor had no eyewitnesses and no clear motive. >> [ speaking foreign language ]. >> reporter: the case rested e

from perugia on amanda knox's hearing all week. >>> coming up on "good morning america," an extremerward. over the south pacific in 1943. vietnam, 1967. i got mine in iraq, 2003. u.s.a.a. auto insurance is often handed down from generation to generation, because it offers a superior level of protection and because u.s.a.a.'s commitment to serve the military, veterans, and their families is without equal. begin your legacy. get an auto insurance quote. u.s.a.a. we know what it means to serve. but they'd rather thy disappear. mott's medleys has two total fruit and veggie servings in every glassss but magically looks and tastes just like the fruit juice ids already love. mott's medleys. invisible vegetables. magical taste. [ male announcer ] know the feeling? try acuvue® oasys brand contact lenses with hydraclear® plus for exceptional comfort. it feels like it disappeared on my eye! [ male announcer ] discover why it's the brand eye doctors trust most for comfort. acuvue® oasys brand. ♪ you are an obsession ♪ you are an obsession you're m ♪ you are an obsession you're my obsession ♪ >>

keith miller, nbc news, perugia. >>> in london, fans are creating a makeshift memorial to amy winehouse. a london paper quoted her mother as saying it was only a matter of time before winehouse died. the singer struggled with drug and alcohol abuse. meanwhile, winehouse's best known album has shot to the top of the charts in great britain. >>> when we come back here tonight, after days of brutal heat, could the weather finally be taking a turn? >>> it was a little cooler today, a little, along the east coast, but what a week it has been. the heat dome that enveloped much of the country grew out of the midwest and slowly moved east, breaking more than 800 temperature records along the way. we're joined now by the weather channel's stephanie moore. what's it look like in the days ahead, stephanie? >> looks like we're going to see that heat start to break a little bit, lester. in fact, we're already starting to see that happen across parts of the northeast. thank goodness, we'll take every break we can get. you know, in dallas-ft. worth, we have had some 23 straight days of 100 or better.

in the meantime perugia preparing for their final group saying count against chile both teams have four points off to two games but only a win will guarantee qualification europe why are one point behind and in case of beating mexico the also progress piro coach mark out knows he has to defeat one of the best same so far in this tournament. taking the first two rounds of matches into account i think chile is this side to his played good best football but that's not news to me i know that he's a great players because they gave an excellent performance in the last world cup because the coach they have at the moment is adding to that so we know that chile will be very hard upon us. if our president's a loved one has sent a stern warning to potential rule breakers following a series of match fixing scandals worldwide however the seventy five year old is saw no foul play in the mexican f.a. clearing five players accused of doping. these people directly involved we could suspend them for life all those involved whether their players trainers officials or referees to concerning the recent mexi

the hearing on the dna evidence, josh, will continue this saturday here in perugia. >> abc's elizabethwinehouse is being laid to rest today at a private funeral for close friends and family. still no official cause of death that's been announced but an autopsy was inconclusive. she did have a history of drug and alcohol abuse. >>> now diane sawyer with a preview of tonight's "world news." diane? >> hey, josh, good morning to you and everyone at "good morning america." a health alert on "world news" for women at a high risk of a common, treatable disease if caught early. some doctors aren't giving the tools needed to fight it. that's coming up tonight on "world news." >> that is a look at the news. george and robin, seven past the hour. >> are you ready? >> i am. >> are you ready? the sounds of the pop news heat index and our girl lara. >> what about me? i'm ready. all right. let's get to it. temperatures dropping, pop news heat index very hot today. we begin with michael jackson. could be a thriller for his fans. the jacksons planning a tribute concert to honor the late pop star. octob

around the world, the prosecution and amanda knox's defense team will cross-examine defense experts in perugiatoday. on monday, forensic experts attacked evidence used to convict knox and sollecito for the murder of meredith kercher. knox, sollecito and a third man were convicted and sent to jail for kercher's murder. >>> nato warplanes carried out strikes on libyan transmitters last night. they used state-of-the-art precision guided munitions. nato says three satellite transmission dishes were disabled by the air strike in tripoli. reports indicate up to a dozen explosions rocked the libyan capital. >>> to china where family and friends of the victims of last week's train crash will pay last respects today. 40 people died a week ago today when a high-speed train crossing a bridge was derailed by a lightning strike and another train slammed into it from behind. a chinese railway official blamed the crash on design flaws in the equipment that failed to flash and correct signals after that lightning strike. >>> in northern japan, flooding and landslide warnings for areas including the tsunami di

. >>> and it's a battle over dna evidence in an appeals court in pressu perugia, italy, today. amanda knox is hoping to get her murder conviction overturned. earlier, a dna expert denied that crucial piece of evidence, that it was mishandled during the 2007 investigation. well, this week, two court-appointed experts cast serious doubts on the evidence. knox, her former boyfriend, and another man were convicted of murdering meredith kercher back in 2007. >>> family members and supporters of two american hikers detained in iran rallied outside the country's mission to the united nations yesterday. they are calling for the release of josh fattal and shane bauer. the two men were scheduled to have a final trial on espionage charges tomorrow. sarah shourd was released in september of 2010 after 410 days in solitary confinement. >>> held without bond. the muslim u.s. army private who authorities say admits to a plot to bomb a restaurant popular with fort hood soldiers. naser jason abbo is charged with possession of an unstructured destructive device. he refused to stand when the judg

. >> and that was keith miller reporting from perugia, italy. >>> president obama is counting on compromiseo get a debt reduction deal before tuesday's deadline, but at this point is it even possible to avoid a default? and u.s. troops in afghanistan have a question for the nation's top military man. will they get paid? his answer, coming up on msnbc saturday. [ barks ] ♪ [ cat meows ] ♪ [ whistles ] ♪ [ cat meows ] ♪ [ ting! ] [ male announcer ] travelers can help you protect the things you care about and save money with multi-policy discounts. are you getting the coverage you need and the discounts you deserve? for an agent or quote, call 800-my-coverage or visit travelers.com. dr. scholl's custom fit orthotic center recommends the custom-fit orthotic that's best for your tired feet. foot-care scientists are behind it. you'll get all-day relief. for your tired achy feet. for locations, see drscholls.com. thank you... ♪ going to the bank without going to the bank... that's a step forward. with chase quickdeposit on your smartphone, you just snap a picture, hit send and done. chase quickdep

nbc's keith miller is outside the courthouse in perugia, italy.od morning. >> reporter: good morning, lester. well, it's crunch time for amanda knox in her appeal of the murder conviction. the defense team for knox in these next days of testimony are convinced their client will be set free. despite years in prison, amanda knox continues to appear as the all-american girl. the 24-year-old from seattle, washington, just celebrated her fourth birthday behind bars. with a cappuccino shared with fellow inmates. according to her mother, knox expects to spend her next birthday back home with friends and family. >> she's definitely more hopeful she will be spending christmases and everything from, you know, now on at home. >> reporter: on monday, the court will hear crucial the testimony from court-appointed forensic experts. in the absence of an eyewitness, and the defendants proclaiming their innocence, the prosecution relied on dna to win a conviction. this case has always been about the dna. but during this appeal process, it appears a flaw has emerge

amanda knox' mother edda mellas is also in perugia. >> good morning, matt. >> you just left amanda. you just paid her a visit. talk to me about the time you spent together. >> well, it was our regular, you know, hour visit. we talked a lot about what happened in court today or yesterday and how she was feeling. and, you know, her first response was, well, i'm still in -- i'm still in here. however, she understands that yesterday was a really good day for her, a really positive day and finally, you know, independents are recognizing that everything we've said from the beginning is true. >> talk to me a little bit about that confidence because i know as a mother you want her to have that sense of hope, but you also have to guard against irrational hope because it would be a devastating fall if things don't go her way. >> right. that's exactly what happened in the first trial when there was really nothing there that connected her to the crime, but she was still found guilty. that's why her first response is, well, i'm still here. so she knows that it's not over until she actually walks

. >> i brought you back some chocolate from perugia. >> oh, good. let me get through the news. we are going to begin with some new rules of the road. this morning, president obama is unveiling new fuel economy standards, the biggest increase ever. by the year 2025, cars will be required to get 54.5 miles per gallon. double what they get today. though suvs and trucks will be subjected to less-stringent annual improvements. and for the first time ever, executives at the major automakers are endorsing the new proposed standards. >>> meanwhile, some breaking news overseas. a new report has just been released on what caused the 2009 air france crash over the atlantic which killed 228 people. french investigators blamed pilot errors and unreliable equipment. the airbus flying from rio to paris went into a high altitude stall. investigators are now recommending additional training for pilots to help them fly planes manually. >>> and this morning, poland says air traffic controllers in russia are partly to blame for last year's plane crash that killed poland's president and several top

keith miller is in perugia, italy with the latest on this story. >> good morning, ann.he beginning of the end of amanda knox's long battle in court to win her freedom. and in he's final days of testimony, it's all about the dr dna. the underground courtroom bunker built to prosecute mafia was packed. when court was in session, knox visibly stiffened. this is the last chance for the justice she says she deserves. then a forensic scientists pointed by the court to review the dna evidence testified about the results to convict knox and her former boyfriend, failed to conform to international standards. specifically, the knife allegedly used to murder knox's roommate, an exchange student from england, could not be retested as there wasn't enough dna material to analyze. and another key piece of evidence, dna allegedly matching knox's co-defendant is too contaminated to evaluate. >> we are hearing very minute fine details. mistakes that were quite obviously made. >> reporter: in her new book on the case "the fatal gift of beauty" the author claims knox was the victim of a ru

nick piza correspondent for "the daily news" in london is in perugia, italy.ou. >> reporter: a bit of a slow start because the prosecutors in the defense were arguing over the best way how to take hold of the independent report from the two experts we heard earlier this week. amanda knox is in court again as the 24-year-old american continues to appeal her conviction for murder. today is the prosecution's turn to examine independent experts who earlier this week said much of the dna evidence crucial to knox's conviction is inadmissible. in 2007 knox and her then boyfriend were found guilty of murdering meredith kercher. the couple and the local drifter rudy goday were found guilty. independent experts found the samples of knox and kercher's dna on the alleged murder weapon were too small to be reliable and the way in which evidence was collected could have been contaminated. police bagged it with dirty gloves on. this is a key turning point in the case. >> we've been optimistic because amanda has told us the truth, that the truth will be assessed in the trial