Polanski arrested in connection with rape charge

(CNN) -- Filmmaker Roman Polanski has been arrested in Switzerland on an arrest warrant issued 31 years ago in connection with a rape charge.

The Academy Award-winning director pleaded guilty in 1977 to having sex with a 13-year-old girl in the United States, but fled the country before he could be sentenced. Authorities in the United States issued a warrant for his arrest in 1978.

He was taken into custody on Saturday, Zurich police said.

Polanski has lived in France for decades to avoid being arrested if he enters the U.S. He declined to collect his Academy Award for Best Director in person when he won it for "The Pianist" in 2003.

He was en route to the Zurich Film Festival, which is holding a tribute to him, when he was arrested by Swiss authorities, the festival said.

Polanski was nominated for best director Oscars for "Tess" and "Chinatown," and for best writing for "Rosemary's Baby," which he also directed.

"Roman Polanski, who is one of the greatest film directors of all time, would have been honored for his life's work in Zurich today," the film festival said in a statement.

"However yesterday, on Saturday, he was taken into custody while attempting to enter Switzerland due to a request by U.S. authorities in connection with an arrest warrant from 1978."

Polanski was accused of plying a 13-year-old girl with champagne and a sliver of a quaalude tablet and performing various sex acts, including intercourse, with her during a photo shoot at actor Jack Nicholson's house.

Nicholson was not at home, but his girlfriend at the time, actress Anjelica Huston, was.

According to a probation report contained in the filing, Huston described the victim as "sullen."

"She appeared to be one of those kind of little chicks between -- could be any age up to 25. She did not look like a 13-year-old scared little thing," Huston said.

She added that Polanski did not strike her as the type of man who would force himself on a young girl.

"I don't think he's a bad man," she said in the report. "I think he's an unhappy man."

Polanski pleaded guilty to a single count of having unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor.

There have been repeated attempts to settle the case over the years, but the sticking point has always been Polanski's refusal to return to attend hearings.

Prosecutors have consistently argued that it would be a miscarriage of justice to allow a man to go free who "drugged and raped a 13-year-old child."

Polanski's lawyers tried earlier this year to have the charges thrown out, but a Los Angeles judge rejected the request.

In doing so, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Peter Espinoza left the door open to reconsider his ruling if Polanski shows up in court.

Espinoza also appeared to acknowledge problems with the way the 76-year-old director's case was handled years ago.

According to court documents, Polanski, his lawyer and the prosecutor thought they'd worked out a deal that would spare Polanski from prison and let the young victim avoid a public trial.

But the original judge in the case, who is now dead, first sent the director to maximum-security prison for 42 days while he underwent psychological testing. Then, on the eve of his sentencing, the judge told attorneys he was inclined to send Polanski back to prison for another 48 days.

Polanski fled the United States for France, where he was born.

In the February hearing, Espinoza mentioned a documentary film that depicts backroom deals between prosecutors and a media-obsessed judge who was worried his public image would suffer if he didn't send Polanski to prison.

"It's hard to contest some of the behavior in the documentary was misconduct," said Espinoza.

But he declined to dismiss the case entirely.

Legal experts said such a ruling would have been extremely rare.

Polanski's victim is among those calling for the case to be tossed out.

Larry Silver, the victim's lawyer, said he was disappointed in the ruling and that Espinoza "did not get to the merits and consider the clear proof of both judicial and prosecutorial corruption."

He argued in court that had "Mr. Polanski been treated fairly" his client would not still be suffering because of publicity almost 32 years after the crime.

Polanski was arrested two days after one of his wife's killers died.

The director's pregnant wife, actress Sharon Tate, and four others were butchered by members of the "Manson family" in August 1969.

By her own admission, Susan Atkins held the eight-months-pregnant Tate down as she pleaded for mercy, stabbing the 26-year-old actress 16 times.

Polanski was filming in Europe at the time.

Atkins, 61, died Thursday. She had been suffering from terminal brain cancer.

!!!!!

If it is true, it is sad.

I'm quite sure this is true, I just saw a segment about it on BBC World News

quote:

Originally posted by JOSE:
If it is true, it is sad.

Its one of the top stories on almost every news station.

OMG. This is bad. The justice system can be so SKETCHY sometimes. If the victim wants it thrown out, its been 30+ years and there's proof that there was misconduct during the original trial, then why hasn't this case been thrown out yet????? For anyone who hasn't seen it, I highly recommend that you check out the recent HBO documentary ROMAN POLANSKI: WANTED & DESIRED.

Wow! Very sad situation all around.

Actions have consequences. Running away and not being a man does not get any praise from me.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: DLD,

Seanflynn will have a field day with this one.

I predict about 150 replies before a moderator shuts the thread down.

quote:

"I don't think he's a bad man," she said in the report. "I think he's an unhappy man."

I agree.

Wow. How incredibly sad. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I think it's silly that Polanski couldn't return to the U.S. In fact, this whole situation is silly.

I know my opinion on this will be very unpopular around here, so I will simply say, "Good."

Being arrested doesn't mean being extradited.

Not having much knowledge of Swiss law, I can't say how this will turn out.

But the complicated issues in this case possibly guarantee quite a bit of litigation before he is returned to the US, if he actually is.

There is no way Polanski would have travelled to Switzerland without his lawyers being sure this wouldn't have happened. Switzerland, as far as I understand, is a fairly loose federation with each of its cantons (states) have quite different laws. But extradition is a federal issue. So I am not sure at all that this was even legal.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: seanflynn,

Polanski's victim is among those calling for the case to be tossed out.

Samantha Geimer filed court papers in January saying, "I am no longer a 13-year-old child. I have dealt with the difficulties of being a victim, have surmounted and surpassed them with one exception.

"Every time this case is brought to the attention of the Court, great focus is made of me, my family, my mother and others. That attention is not pleasant to experience and is not worth maintaining over some irrelevant legal nicety, the continuation of the case."

Geimer, now 45, married and a mother of three, sued Polanski and received an undisclosed settlement. She long ago came forward and made her identity public -- mainly, she said, because she was disturbed by how the criminal case had been handled.

Following Espinoza's ruling earlier this year, Geimer's lawyer, Larry Silver, said he was disappointed and that Espinoza "did not get to the merits and consider the clear proof of both judicial and prosecutorial corruption."

He argued in court that had "Mr. Polanski been treated fairly" his client would not still be suffering because of publicity almost 32 years after the crime.

Polanski was arrested two days after one of his wife's killers died.

The director's pregnant wife, actress Sharon Tate, and four others were butchered by members of the Manson "family" in August 1969. Polanski was filming in Europe at the time.

By her own admission, Susan Atkins held the eight-months-pregnant Tate down as she pleaded for mercy, stabbing the 26-year-old actress 16 times.

Atkins, 61, died Thursday. She had been suffering from terminal brain cancer. http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBI...an.polanski.arrested

This is a terrible situation. There is absolutely no one who "wins" in this whole saga by Polanski being apprehended.

Nikki Finke hints at Polanski being "double-crossed" by the Swiss (in other words, having been assured that there were no issues in entering the country, then arrested), and the French government (Polanski is a French citizen) outraged.

If he is extradited, I wouldn't be surprised if there is a major high-level French arts boycott of Switzerland.

It is fun that during two wars, people run away to Switzerland to be safe and now... But in Europe is a general idea that swiss are simple weirds. A country where there are 4 official languages so sort of 4 countries... 4 different mentalities. Zurich is in the german side.
I am curious in which way it turn it out.

How bizarre that the authorities are still throwing funds behind this initiative... more than 3 decades after it happened.

I sometimes get the sense that the US justice system is attempting to entertain its peoples through focus on sordid activity (e.g. tossing a classy lady like Martha Stewart into lock p for such a minor charge and basically wrecking her life for several years).

quote:

Originally posted by MysteriousRent:
I know my opinion on this will be very unpopular around here, so I will simply say, "Good."

I agree with you. I don't know if he should serve time now that the victim has attempted to get the case thrown out and allegations of misconduct at the original hearings have arisen, but he needed to be apprehended somehow. Closure had to be put on this issue... Just because someone is a great artist doesn't mean they can flout the low, be a coward about it and expect to never face the consequences.

So, I'm not sure if this was legal, and I haven't made up my mind on what I believe the sentencing should be (because of various factors, one being that the victim has publicly forgiven him and attempted to get the case thrown out), but I'm glad he was arrested.

I have a feeling that once Polanski is on US soil, things can be settled. Things were bungled at the onset, but that doesn't mean he should get away with a complete dismissal. But after this many years, I don't think he'll go to prison. I would expect probation. He should have come to the US years ago, worked out a deal, etc. Just because he's a talented director doesn't mean he should get a free pass.

Have the lawyers work out a deal, agree to come to the US, accept punishment, etc.