Roman Polanksi’s battle to try and avoid being extradited from Switzerland to America to face charges of having sex with a 14-year-old that he fled from three decades ago, have stepped up a gear. Variety reports that lawyers for the director have gone to court in the US to try and get the charges dropped, which would mean Roman would be a completely free man (he’s currently under house arrest at his Swiss chalet).
The reason hid lawyers think they have a chance isn’t because Polanski is innocent, but that in 1978 he only plead guilty to a lesser charge than the ones he was originally faced with as part of a plea deal, which would have meant he wouldn’t have to spend any more time in prison than the 42 days he served when he was put behind bars for a psychiatric evaluation.
However, it’s believed that the judge in that case was going ignore the deal and was planning to jail Roman for longer. There are also accusation that the judge was involved in negotiations and deals he shouldn’t have taken part in, which Polanski’s lawyers have said is a part of “a remarkable, astonishing record of misconduct”.
When Polanski heard he was probably going back to prison (if only for a relatively short time – it’s believed he’d have probably be locked up for six weeks more at the most), he fled to France.
Although the three judge panel hasn’t yet ruled on this latest attempt by the director not to have to return to America, it’s thought it’s unlikely to succeed, because while the charges could eventually be dropped, it probably won’t happen until Polanski is back in the US. As with other attempts he’s made to have the case dismiised, a legal doctrine called ‘fugitive disentitlement’ says that defendants who flee the law cannot then seek relief from the court, unless they return in person to have them heard. It is this that the LA District Attorney is arguing makes this legal challenge irrelevant, until Polanski is extradited. So for now, the fight goes on.