BERN, Switzerland – The Swiss government declared master filmmaker Roman Polanski (Repulsion, Rosemary’s Baby, Chinatown) a free man on Monday, after rejecting a U.S. request to extradite him on a charge of having sex with a 13-year-old girl in 1977.
The Swiss mostly blamed U.S. authorities for failing to provide confidential testimony about Polanski’s sentencing procedure in 1977-1978.
The stunning decision could end the United States’ three-decade pursuit of Polanski, unless he travels to another country that would be willing to apprehend him and weigh sending him to Los Angeles. France, where he has spent much of his time, does not extradite its own citizens, and the public scrutiny over Switzerland’s deliberations may dissuade other nations from making such a spectacular arrest.
The Swiss government said it had sought confidential testimony given on Jan. 26 by Roger Gunson, the Los Angeles attorney in charge of the original prosecution against Polanski. Washington rejected the request.
Justice Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf declared, “Mr. Polanski can now move freely. Since 12:30 today he’s a free man.”
Authorities in Los Angeles and Washington are not able to appeal the Swiss decision, either.
In 1978, after being arrested on six counts, Polanski had the misfortune to come before one of Los Angeles’ most powerful judges, Laurence J. Rittenband.
Judge Rittenband was press-hungry and impulsive, known for being a tough sentencer. His private life was rather different from his public image, as well. He was reportedly good friends with LA lawyer Sidney Korshak, the Chicago Mafia’s West Coast fixer. Rittenband also had two long-term girlfriends on the go — one being barely 20 years old when she met the judge. ‘I have one that cooks and one that does the other stuff, ‘ he boasted.
Rittenband’s involvement in the case left little room for a fair trial. On the verge of being sentenced, Polanski boarded a British Airways flight to London and then on to Paris, never to return to the US again.
In 1993, the victim in the case, Samantha Geimer, received a hefty settlement from Polanski, which led her to publicly forgive the film director and drop charges against him.
Years later, on 26 September 2009, Polanski was taken into custody at the Zurich airport by Swiss police at the request of U.S. authorities, for a 2005 international arrest warrant, as he traveled to accept a lifetime achievement award at the Zurich Film Festival.
Tags: Roman Polanski
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