Roman Polanski arrested by Swiss police

[deadrats]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090927/ap_on_en_mo/eu_switzerland_polanski

i know what i'm about to say will raise a few eye brows and i hope it's not misconstrued but i really thing the fact that this guy is still wanted and facing prison time is a glowing testament that we have a very flawed legal system.

first, his crime was committed in 1977, that 32 years ago. second, his victim wants the case dismissed and long ago sued (and accepted a settlement from) Polanski and clearly she feels that justice has been done in this case and lastly is this reality, quoted straight from the article:

In 1977, he was accused of raping the teenager while photographing her during a modeling session. The girl said Polanski plied her with champagne and part of a Quaalude pill at Jack Nicholson's house while the actor was away. She said that, despite her protests, he performed oral sex, intercourse and sodomy on her.

Polanski was allowed to plead guilty to one of six charges, unlawful sexual intercourse, and was sent to prison for 42 days of evaluation.

Lawyers agreed that would be his full sentence, but the judge tried to renege on the plea bargain. Aware the judge would sentence him to more prison time and require his voluntary deportation, Polanski fled.

personally i consider rape to be an abhorrent crime and i am of the school of though that the punishments should be severe, but i also have a serious problem with holding some accountable for something they did 3+ decades ago.

now don't get me wrong, if he had been caught and sentenced to 10 years hard labor or 10 years in general population, i would have no problem with that, but to still hound someone for something that happened 32 years ago, both the victim and very likely the offender are not the same people they were back then. on top of that we have the deal that was stuck in this case that the judge was about to renege on, i can't help but feel that this guys arrest is a gross miscarriage of justice.

[budz]

^^^waste more tax money on getting him prosecuted.

[tgpo]

You do the crime, you do the time. Plain and simple.

[lordsmurf]

The accusations seem shaky at best -- he said, she said -- and then he already did time. Heck, he was basically forced to leave the country! Leave him alone. Justice was served long ago.

[adam]

If they don't extradite him back and proceed with the sentencing that NEVER HAPPENED then it will become the most publicized example of outrunning and evading justice in world history. At this point the bail jumping charge he will likely face is much more meaningful then the original sexual assault charge.

He plead guilty. How can it be a he said she said? She said it happened, and he agreed.

[pchan]

I would say the prosecutor in LA has his work priority mess up. There are many unsolved murder cases in LA. Didn't some late "super star" paid off someone to have "molestation" case sweep under the carpet ? He got away. It's universal.... the law is not equal. Sad.... By going after an old man and telling the world ... that no one is above the law....

[lordsmurf]

I don't understand this:

despite acknowledging "substantial misconduct," a judge ruled that Polanski would have to appear in person to pursue his motion

Seems like a waste of time.

[zzyzzx]

I bet he is a big Micheal Jackson fan and vice versa.