I never followed this case but nevertheless after reading about it when the initial arrest was made felt that he would be released. It seems these “Hollywood types” can get away with just about everything. TGO
Refer to story below. Source: Associated Press
by Andre Lehmann Andre Lehmann
BERN (AFP) – Switzerland declared Roman Polanski a free man Monday after rejecting a request to extradite the film director to the United States to answer for a child sex case dating back more than three decades.
Some 10 months after Polanski’s dramatic arrest in Zurich, Swiss Justice Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf said Washington accepted Bern’s move to block the extradition, as his lawyer claimed the Oscar winner still hoped one day to return to the United States.
Widmer-Schlumpf said the decision came after the US justice department failed to provide records of a hearing in which Polanski claimed his case had been settled and sentence agreed.
“In these circumstances it is not possible to exclude with the necessary certainty that Roman Polanski has already served the sentence he was condemned to at the time and that the extradition request is undermined by a serious fault,” the minister said.
“Considering the persisting doubts concerning the presentation of the facts of the case, the request has to be rejected.”
Widmer-Schlumpf also told a press conference “the United States cannot contest the decision,” adding that Washington “has accepted” Bern’s move.
The US Justice Department said it had no comment on Switzerland’s decision.
The Franco-Polish director, now 76, plied a girl called Samatha Geimer with champagne and drugs during a 1977 photo shoot at the Hollywood home of actor Jack Nicholson before having sex with her despite her protests.
The director was initially charged with six felony counts, including rape and sodomy. The charge was later reduced to unlawful intercourse after a plea deal agreed in part to spare his victim the ordeal of a trial.
Polanski later served 42 days at a secure unit undergoing psychiatric evaluation but fled the United States on the eve of his sentencing in 1978 amid fears the trial judge planned to go back on a previously agreed plea deal.
After his arrest last September in Switzerland, Polanski was initially confined to prison before being bailed on 4.5 million Swiss francs (3.0 million euros, 4.5 million dollars) and ordered to surrender his passport.
The France-based director was also not allowed out of the grounds of his 1,800 square metre (19,400 square foot) property in the ski resort of Gstaad and fitted with an electronic bracelet.
On Monday afternoon, a member of his entourage told journalists waiting outside the chalet that Polanski had left.
In his fight against extradition, Polanski insisted he had served the time agreed in the US and claims to the contrary in the extradition warrant were false.
While there was no immediate reaction from Polanski, his lawyer said he still held out hope of returning to the United States.
“I am glad because he will be able to return to France and will be free to see his son, his daughter and his wife (actress) Emmanuelle Seigner, whom I pay tribute to because she has shown great courage during this whole period,” Georges Kiejman told AFP.
“I think the misunderstanding with the American authorities will be easier to resolve and I hope that he will one day be able to return to the United States.”
The French government also hailed Switzerland’s decision, with both Culture Minister Frederic Mitterrand and Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner issuing statements to express delight.
Poland’s Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski thanked his Swiss counterpart Micheline Calmy-Rey via telephone for the “prudent decision”, his office said.
Polanski’s flight from justice came after a string of hit films including “Rosemary’s Baby” and “Chinatown”.
The director, whose then wife Sharon Tate was horrifically murdered by Charles Manson’s “family” in 1969, won an Oscar for his 2002 film “The Pianist” but was unable to collect the award because of his fugitive status.
He put the finishing touches on his latest film “The Ghost Writer” while under house arrest in Gstaad.
I agree totally TGO, and with a following of admirers she claims she has, it serves only one purpose to me: it only points out the lack of education, the lack of knowledge, and the lack of understanding her viewers portray. Most of them seem s content remaining ignorant, but that’s alright too I guess, future welfare clients we will all be supporting down the road, even trailer-trash has to choose some channel on television to watch. 🙂
Roman Polanski proves Nancy Grace wrong, again.
Nancy Grace is wrong for the tenth billionth time.
Roman Polanski – a Free Man, proves Nancy Grace wrong again. CNN transcripts indicate that Nancy Grace said, repeatedly, that Roman would be prosecuted and will spend the rest of his life in prison, and “never see the light of day.” Wrong, Nancy. At least you are consistent at always being wrong about something of the cases she tries to cover. It’s no wonder why she was thrown out of Atlanta years ago and why she cannot practice Law anymore anywhere within the 50 states of the United States.
http://frigginloon.wordpress.com/2010/07/12/switzerland-rejects-extradition-of-roman-polanski-back-to-the-us/
Roman Polanski is a dirt-bag who deserves to be in prison. Having said that, Nancy Grace is an *sshole; I can’t stand her. Her whole routine is one of sensationalism. It’s amazing that people like her are making millions upon millions of dollars.