Filmmaker Roman Polanski will fight extradition back to the U.S. after being arrested on Saturday in Switzerland. He has had a U.S. warrant out for his arrest since 1978, stemming from charges of having sex with a minor. Read more about the story here.
The Academy Award winning director fled the United States in 1978, the day before he was to be sentenced for “having unlawful sex with a minor”, 13-year-old Samantha Geimer.
His lawyer has said that he will fight the extradition back to the United States, which could mean that Polanski could end up staying in Switzerland for several months. The U.S. has 60 days to file a formal request for his return, but Polanski could ask for the Federal Penal Court of Justice to dismiss the request and appeal higher, or the Federal Court of Justice. Have I lost you yet? If that is denied, he can once again appeal to the same two courts. Confusing, I know. So there really is no way of knowing how long he could end up in Switzerland.
Polanski’s attorney, Herve Temime, released the following statement:
“Mr. Polanski has refused to be extradited. Considering the outrageous circumstances of his arrest, his Swiss lawyer will immediately request his release, possibly under certain conditions. His lawyers also emphasize that any extradition request is illegal.”
He was arrested at a Zurich airport on Saturday, where he was to have received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Zurich Film Festival. Since his arrest, he has garnered international support. France and Poland (he is a citizen of both) have tried to persuade Switzerland to release him, and have also spoken to U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton regarding the situation.
In an interesting twist, Geimer, who is 45 years old now, has maintained since 1997 that she would like to have the charges dropped against Polanski and has already forgiven him, even appearing in the 2008 HBO documentary, Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired.
So let’s open this up for discussion. Should Polanski be extradited back to the U.S.? Shouldn’t he face the charges he skipped out on 30 years ago? Let me know your thoughts in the comment section. Also, there is a related video on the case below.
Photos: www.wenn.com