An Italian high court confirmed Rudy Guede’s 16-year-sentence in the murder of Meredith Kercher today in Rome.

Guede, who like Amanda Knox had been convicted in the November, 2007 killing of the British student in Perugia, was on his final appeal. He had been sentenced to 30 years in the first trial, and that was reduced to 16 on appeal. But today, the Court of Cassation confirmed the 16-year sentence.

I was in the courtroom for hearings today, and it looked pretty clear from the body language of the seven-judge panel that they were not buying the arguments of Rudy’s defense lawyer.

Rudy’s fingerprints were all over the crime scene, and he couldn’t deny that he was in Meredith’s apartment. In fact, he claimed, the only thing he was guilty of was not doing more to save Meredith.

What does the decision mean for Amanda, who was convicted last year?  Amanda’s appeal along with her former boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, is currently taking place in Perugia.  The decision is not especially positive for Amanda and Raffaele, because it means the Court of Cassation accepted the argument that Meredith was killed by all three people.

Knox is back in court again on Saturday, when the judge could call for a review of the forensic evidence used in the first trial. That would be good news for Amanda.