Kercher murder suspects to remain in jail

ROME, Italy (CNN) -- An Italian judge has ruled that two suspects in the killing of British exchange student Meredith Kercher must remain in jail while they await trial, the lawyer for one of the suspects said Thursday.

American Amanda Knox, 21, and her former Italian boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, 24, have been in jail since the killing nearly a year ago. Their lawyers had sought house arrest for the pair while they await trial, but Judge Paolo Micheli refused the request, Sollecito's lawyer, Luca Maori, told CNN.

Micheli said releasing the suspects on house arrest would offer them the opportunity to commit a homicide or flee the country, Maori said.

The judge ruled this week that adequate evidence existed to try the pair for Kercher's grisly death. The trial is scheduled to begin December 4.

A third person involved in the case, Ivory Coast native Rudy Guede, 21, was convicted on Tuesday in Kercher's murder and sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Guede, Sollecito, and Knox have all denied wrongdoing. Guede's attorney said he plans to appeal.

The case is happening in Perugia, Italy, a university town in the hills outside Rome. Knox and Kercher shared a villa in the town while both were on exchange programs at the University of Perugia.

Kercher, 21, was found dead in her bed nearly a year ago, having bled to death from a knife wound to her neck. Official reports said she may have been sexually assaulted before she died.

Prosecutors alleged Guede committed sexual violence against Kercher with the help of Knox and Sollecito. They have said the three then strangled and stabbed the British student and took money, credit cards and cell phones in an attempt to make it look like the crime occurred during a robbery.

Guede has admitted being in the villa when Kercher was killed, but has said an unknown assailant killed her while he was out of the room.

Police said a bloody footprint from a shoe next to Kercher's body came from Sollecito. They also said investigators found traces of blood belonging to both Knox and Kercher mixed together in a bathroom adjacent to the room where Kercher died.

Both Knox and Sollecito have given what prosecutors have said are confusing and contradictory accounts of what happened the night Kercher was killed.

CNN's Hada Messia contributed to this report.