ZURICH – Director Roman Polanski was arrested by Swiss police as he flew in for the Zurich Film Festival and faces possible extradition to the United States for having sex in 1977 with a 13-year-old girl, authorities said Sunday.
Polanski was scheduled to receive an honorary award at the festival when he was apprehended Saturday at the airport, the Swiss Justice Ministry said in a statement. It said U.S. authorities have sought the arrest of the 76-year-old director around the world since 2005.
“There was a valid arrest request and we knew when he was coming,” ministry spokesman Guido Balmer told The Associated Press. “That’s why he was taken into custody.”
Polanski, the director of such classic films as “Chinatown,” “Rosemary’s Baby,” fled the U.S. in 1978, a year after pleading guilty to unlawful sexual intercourse with the underage girl.
Polanski has asked a U.S. appeals court in California to overturn a judges’ refusal to throw out his case. He claims misconduct by the now-deceased judge who had arranged a plea bargain and then reneged on it.
His victim, Samantha Geimer, who long ago identified herself publicly, has joined in Polanski’s bid for dismissal, saying she wants the case to be over. She sued Polanski and reached an undisclosed settlement. Polanski’s French lawyer, Georges Kiejman, told France-Inter radio that it was “too early to know” if Polanski would be extradited.
“The proceedings must take their course,” he said Sunday. “For now we are trying to have the arrest warrant lifted in Zurich.”
here’s to hoping that he rots in pelican bay.
Another pedophile who pays off his victims. 😛
Does anyone really think that these Holder and Obama will just sit by and let Polanski be extradited?
* Attorney General Eric Holder (the mastermind behind the infamous Marc Rich pardon and the abhorrent release of the the armed, uniformed Black Panthers who stood outside a polling place last year and intimidated voters)
and
* President Obama (who is adored by the liberal elite in Hollywood who regularly lionize Polanski as a misunderstood genius and support the ACORN organization that gives tax advice on setting up child prostitution centers)
Now if Polanski only had some connections with the CIA, he wouldn’t have a chance in hell of avoiding the extradition.
Overdue
Will they arrest Jack Nicholson too?
Is this going to put him on the sexual predators list?
What deal with the devil have the Swiss made? Anyone who knows this case knows that the publicity seeking, ego maniacal, judge (who was also known as an incompetent boob) acted improperly, lied and then reneged on a legal agreement (if someone had done that with him, he would have thrown the book at the them). The girl involved in the case (now a woman in her forties) has forever maintained that the press coverage is far more embarrassing than the incident itself and has always wanted the case quietly dismissed against Polanski. But since the Christian Taliban have effectively taken the bulk of the US courts, perceived morals transgressions (even cases over thirty years old) demand that the “evil ones” be burned at the stake, or the next best thing that is allowable under the law.
Anyone who’s paid attention to the idiocy and nonsense in the US the past number of years is not too surprised by these hysterical witch hunts (though this case makes even the most cynical critic drop his jaw in disbelief) but for the comparatively free and level-headed Swiss to be aiding and abetting in this absurd idiocy makes one wonder what ugly backdoor deal the Swiss authorities have made and for what reason. Perhaps it has something to do with the demand from the current US administration for the Swiss government to release confidential bank information on private customers, a violation even the Swiss government doesn’t demand of its banks. The excuse that the US is looking for “tax evaders” rings quite false, unless the authorities view not getting their payoffs as the gravest of crimes, considering criminals of all ilk have forever used off shore banking to hide the most heinously obtained funds. Regardless of the “justification” it’s just more of the US’ empire building.
Where are all the previous administration’s critics? I was no fan of the war mongering and other crimes committed then and have seen no reason to suddenly view the new administration’s continuation and expansion of those same crimes as suddenly okay. Partisanship is such an obscene joke, the gullible public falls for the ruse while the criminal empire continues to expand.
This crap is ridiculous, why don’t they just arrest half the population and get over with it..
He must have pissed off someone or has some knowledge of something that needs to be kept suppressed.. they could have scooped him up anytime they wanted to if they were serious..
This “Political Enemies” list/witch-hunt crap has got to be stopped.
-s
Waste of money,waste of time,wasted life.
SO if I am reading you lefty libs right it is ok for a confessed child molester to go free because he made a financial settlement with the victim, and you think that it ok for someone to get away with breaking the law because they paid off the victim and she doesn’t want them prosecuted now.
wow where did equal justice for all go
Odd, Polanski is indicted for a crime committed in the USA which is perfectly legal in France, and Donald Rumsfield is indicted for war crimes by France which are perfectly legal in the USA.
>Perhaps it has something to do with the demand from the current US administration for the Swiss government to release confidential bank information on private customers, a violation even the Swiss government doesn’t demand of its banks.
In both cases it is the US wanting the Swiss to do something. So it doesn’t sound like much of a deal, Give me A and … then give me B.
I’m not a liberal, but I do feel very sorry for the girl.
She can’t get away from what he did. She can’t have a normal life.
She wants this all to go away. Why won’t we let it?
#13 – Ah_Yea – She wants this all to go away. Why won’t we let it?
Because pedophiles shouldn’t be able to buy themselves freedom. It was wrong in the Michael Jackson case and it would be wrong in this case.
Holy cow. I can’t believe what I’m reading here. Some people are saying he should go free because of the embarrassment of the girl/lady involved? EGAD. You folks are sickos! How about we nail the predator to the wall… which they are doing… but have the press respect the privacy of the victim… which they are not doing. It’s amazing how people want to bury thing they find inconvenient. Oh… and it’s comforting to see that we’ve managed to blame this on the Christians too. Well done. Well done.
#15 Yea. Those hoodlums. The ones I would not hanging around my neighborhood. But I am sure you would. Right.
While you liberals are at it, why don’t you go and spring Phil Specter?
Wouldn’t there be some statute of limitations? I thought murder only lasted forever?
It’s like with Micheal Jackson, you gotta ask yourself what kind of parent let’s a 13 year old to a stranger’s care and why. If I had a teenage daughter I’d certainly try to keep her away from hollywood parties.
#19. I’m not a lawyer, but I think that “flight” after “admission”, complicates the whole SoL thingy.
Let my man go!
It’s simple… all he has to do is say he is sorry, it was an error in judgment, and he has brought jesus into his life and all will be forgiven. That seems to work for all the christian-taliban who get caught dipping their wick where it doesn’t belong.
Yea. Those hoodlums. The ones I would not hanging around my neighborhood. But I am sure you would. Right.
Whether you or I want them handing out is irrelevant. People accused them of voter intimidation. No evidence of people being intimidated seems to exist. In fact the video evidence shows that people were not intimidated by them. How is dropping the charges “abhorrent” when no one seems to have any evidence that anyone was intimidated?
bah… the whole issue is complete and utter bullshit.
If they wanted him in jail over this
he would have been IN jail no longer than 31 years ago.
The only reason this hot button crap is being pursued now is they need a distraction in the news to keep people bickering over emotional and useless Hollywood minutia, instead of pursing those who are in the process of destroying the economy and the country.
On top of that, there may be a new statutory-type law the TPTB want to delete or get on the books so they have even more power to pursue
people outside the confines of the State.
In case nobody has noticed, our government is out of friggin
control.
YOU have to look at the global picture.
I mean really, wtf is the point of reaching back 32 years into the past, on a case the is OVER and DONE?
The only reason is to manipulate the present or the future to the advantage of the State.
Even the girl wants no part of it,
she settled out and moved on.
If she is not behind this it
should be dropped. -and should
have never seen the light of day again.
This has *nothing* to do about
her or the crime.
This is straight up politics.
-as #12 MikeN inferred, odds are
this is about getting (and abusing) more power to go after people with money in the swiss banks.
I tell you one thing, if obama’s administration continues ruffling Hollywierd money that is overseas,
Hollywierd can and will make wish he was never born.
They are already sore that they dumped untold millions into his war chest and voted for him, for which he graciously turned around and kicked them all (and the country) in the teeth.
Disconnect your emotions from your logic and it will become all too clear.
If you cannot do that, then you should sit down, stfu, and stay
out of the game until you can.
-s
#25 – Soundwash – The only reason this hot button crap is being pursued now is they need a distraction in the news to keep people bickering over emotional and useless Hollywood minutia, instead of pursing those who are in the process of destroying the economy and the country.
RTFA…
If you want to blame an American for the arrest of your pedophile friend, it’s Bush Jr.
Jägermeister,
You’re right. Lock up the sucker!!
I didn’t RTFA because I’d just read a similar one on the Washington Post. One thing in the WaPo article caught my attention and I offer it to you here:
“Sikorski said he and French counterpart Bernard Kouchner also plan to ask Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to offer Polanski clemency.” http://tiny.cc/Kpjpv
Now, I’m not the expert on the US Government that Mr Fusion or Bobbo or Alfie are, but since when does the Sec State have any power to grant clemency?
And, after all the flack she took for supporting Bill when his “peccadilloes” became public knowledge, what would happen to her chances of ever becoming prez if she now arranged clemency for a pedophile?
And, on a side note: I always assumed after Bill’s presidency was over and he started traveling – alone – that we’d hear of more stained dresses and maybe a paternity suit or six. What happened? He’s as clean as new snow? Bill and I are roughly the same age and I haven’t retired! Does she have his balls locked up in a box somewhere?
Fucking A, I named my kid Roman (he’s 14 months now). I love the name and was hoping that Roman Polanski would die off into underground artsy farty obscurity, yeah sure most arts lovers would know his name but kids at his school would never know about the Polanski.
And now this shit happens. Hopefully Polanski will commit suicide and the whole matter will blow over and no one will say “Roman? you mean like Roman Polanski” etc….
Well, since no one else is saying it: anyone that has their pregnant wife hacked up by Charles Manson deserves a little wiggle room. That and being one of the worlds greatest directors having voluntary sex with a hollywood star wanta be with her mother waiting in the car to take her home doesn’t really rise to an outrage==except about the mother.
I think Clinton can “urge” a clemency for anyone she wants, but only the President can actually do it, that and The Govenator given its a California Case (Rape should be a State case?==not if its a Federal Case).
This was not consensual (although for several of you, adults having sex with 13-year olds is ok if the person is famous and liberal).
He drugged and raped a 13-year-old (for a extended period of time in several different ways, to put it as delicately as possible) while she protested and tried to escape. He pled guilty and fled the country.
Glad to see that several people here think he should be let go because they hate Christians. I wouldn’t want my kids around a lot of the posters here.