Roman Polanski arrested in Zurich
 

Switzerland's artists, film directors and writers have angrily condemned the government for arresting Polanski, calling the action a "grotesque farce of injustice" and a cultural "scandal" that will bring Switzerland into disrepute.

The full story below:
"Roman Polanski, the film director, has been arrested in Switzerland in connection with a charge of having sexual relations with an underage girl.

The 76 year-old director is being questioned by police in Zurich over a 1978 arrest warrant issued in America.

He was in the Swiss City for the Zurich Film Festival and due to receive an award on Sunday.

But detectives took him into custody after raiding his hotel.

Two months ago Polanski asked a California appeals court to overturn a judge's refusal to consider his request to throw out a 1977 case in which he pleaded guilty to having sex with a 13-year-old girl.

Polanski, who now lives permanently in Paris, fled America in 1978 before he was sentenced and is considered an international fugitive.

He has not re-entered the country since then, but appealed to have the guilty verdict overturned on the basis of alleged misconduct.

Polanski's lawyers alleged that the original trial judge, who is now deceased, improperly colluded with prosecutors.

The director would have risked arrest if he returned to the United States. His legal team said at the time of the judge's refusal that they planned to appeal against the decision."

Good.

He'll prolly get off lightly though :(

Doubt it. He fled the country in 78 and has had an outstanding warrant for his arrest since then in the States. Has also avoided every country since then that has extradition treaties with the US.

He flew into Zurich to receive a lifetime achievement award, and when he landed they arrested him. I actually find it hilarious.

He pleaded guilty - he deserves what he gets.

The mans is a pedophile. Throw hiim in gaol till he curls up and dies.
I like how left winged homos. Think that any time another artist gets arrested no matter what the charge, Its a crime against humanity. The arrest will "bring Switzerland into disrepute." Yeah, with whom> All the other pedophiles in the world?
"O No the swiss have arrested a child molester How terrible. what a backward nation." Fuck i hate artist.

So being left wing means you're homo. My politics are definally left of centre and I have no pity for rapist whether or not they are great directors or not. So i'm a homo then?

Actually me and my BF were just talking about pricks like you talking shite on the internet.

Ferox, rapist might be a little extreme. Technically, the sex was consentual. Now, I'm not saying that I believe he was right, because I think what he did was filthy, but he did not take the girl against his will. That girl still goes on record as saying the two were in love.

Secondly, when this incident happened originally, Polanski tepped right up to take his charges. He was sentenced to the usual punsihment for this type of thing. But then, the judge brought the charges back up again, demanding a higher penalty. The girl and her mother denied, saying that Polanski got what any ordinary citizen would get in a situation like this. I've seen interviews with the judge where he comes right out and says he doesn't like famous people, so he wanted to slap a life sentence on Polanski.

Now, again, I'm not saying that what he did was right. But the man has gotten wrongfully charged ever since the incident. Things are not quite black and white.

Charles Manson slaughtered Polanski's friends, wife, and unborn baby. Thousands walk around America weraing Manson t-shirts today. I don't hear any upset about that every year...

This is untrue.

She repeatedly says "No", and reports in an HBO documentary about the filmmaker that he gave her queloods and champagne. She also said during the photo shoot she was doing for Polanski for "Vogue", she felt awkward because he told her to change infront of him and from that point on knew she was where she shouldnt be alone with him.

So no, it was not consensual, and they werent in love.

Isn't it nice when we try and sum up people and their entire beliefs by pigeonholing them into one side or another of archaic political parties? I hope he can make movies from prison on supervised work release.

people this mentally ill people dont understand ...they cant be reasoned with ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFsdn...eature=related

I just found this. Its pretty disturbing actually how he acts and reacts to this mans question.

Im amazed it took so long for him to be detained. The man is a paedophile and deserves to be banged up for life.

The remaining members of the family think otherwise. Run into them wearing that shit and you'll get fucked up. The family got done with the full extent of the law and didn't skulk away like that rich pervert asshole. I don't see the comparison you're getting at.

I don't really know the details of the case but sex with a 13 y.o is just plain fucked. The whole "in love" shit just reeks of grooming.

He sure made a couple of great films tho. Hitchcock was a bit of a horrible bastard along with Woody Allen.

Whether or not she said yes, he should have had the sense to say no. Prison is there to teach. Teach people that certain things are wrong. Who cares if he's a great director. The dude's gotta learn!

What I find most disturbing is how everybody is willing to forgive and forget when the pedophile turns out to be a brilliant man in his own field. Like Michael Jackson, now Roman Polanski. If it were you or me this case was about there would be no discussion other then "youre a fucked up pedophile and off to jail you go". The "hes been through enough" excuse can only be used so many times. Surviving the holocaust and your wife being brutally murdered in no way gives you the right to molest young children.

While he will always be one of my favorite directors, the man admits to being a pedophile. That he would admit that to the public I think is cause for concern regarding his state of mind, regardless of how he rationalizes it. I think no leniency should be given, I think he needs to go to prison and serve his time. He did it to himself.

And to the people that think America is "evil" for doing this - youre out of your minds. Thats called the law.

the real travesty is the grammar and spelling in this thread

The difference despite what you think jackson was never convicted.

Please. The guy was great but a total whacko. And while I dont believe the case in which he molested that young boy, I wouldnt put it past the guy hes a pedophile. His entire childhood, that and the combination of his very childlike existence and his obsession with young children preferably all in the same age group.

The guy was awkward and admitted several, several times to doing things completely inappropriate with those children. Just because he didnt screw the kid doesnt mean he doesnt think about it.

Trouble with Jacko is you have to ask yourself...if it had been anyone else, would they have got off?

If i was to guess then i'd agree but at the end of the day unlike Polanski he was never convicted of a crime. So its a different story - I sure that you 'fee'l' or 'know' he was guilty but by law he was never judged as such..

this whole thing tears me up - because what polanski did/is is horrible ..
its a shame because he's one of my favorite filmmakers.

i know something else though - if you took away all the musicians and other movie people who have done the same thing - the jails would be full in hollywood.

bored people with lots of money and eroded morals.

This is amusing since i'm a right wing homo. :)



And good riddance on his arrest. He deserves it.

So lets hope this is a warning to them! :rolleyes:

I would love to hear their arguement.....

.....ZURICH, Switzerland (CNN) -- Woody Allen, Pedro Almodovar and Martin Scorsese have "demanded the immediate release" of fellow filmmaker Roman Polanski, who was arrested in Switzerland on a U.S. arrest warrant related to a 1977 child sex charge.


They were among 138 people in the film industry who signed a petition against the arrest.

Polanski was on the way to the Zurich Film Festival when Swiss police detained him in response to the American warrant.

The filmmaker pleaded guilty in 1977 to having unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor but fled before he could be sentenced. He settled in France, where he holds citizenship. Investigators in the United States say Polanski, then 43, drugged and raped a 13-year-old girl.

The filmmakers objected to his being arrested en route to the film festival, which held a tribute to him this year.

well i guess that in the real world the crime doesnt pay off . . .

I'm pleased to see the law catch up with him.

A person's brilliance in one area does not (and should not) place them above the law. I can't understand how his colleagues can advocate for his release. If the perpetrator was an unknown/poor person, I can't imagine these same people calling for his release. I mean, it's not very acceptable in most circles to condone or promote paedophilia.

When you take the "film-maker" out of the equation, you are left with a man who was convicted of the rape of a 13 year old. Whether this 13 year old protested or not, it is still considered illegal. The addition of "film-maker" to the equation should have no bearing on this. If a member of my profession was convicted of paedophilia, I certainly wouldn't consider condoning these actions based on his profession, and I can't imagine other members of the profession doing so either.

Actually he wasn't - thats what he was charged with (Rape/Sodomy/Lewd Conduct and a few more) but he made a plea bargain and was covicted of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor.

He obviously got away with more than he did.

OK then, "unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor".

But the point still stands - I am sure his supporters would not be calling for his absolution from having unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor were he not a famous filmmaker.

I wasn't dissagring I was making the point that he has already got away with a plea bargain to a lesser crime..

Sure, point taken.

Hopefully he will serve the appropriate sentence...

**********

Jailed moviemaker Roman Polanski agreed to pay the girl he had unlawful sex with $500,000 (GBP333,300) 16 years ago, according to newly-released court documents.

Papers obtained by the Los Angeles Times newspaper suggest the director agreed to pay Samantha Geimer as part of a civil settlement after she filed suit against him in 1988, accusing the director of sexual assault, false imprisonment, intentional infliction of emotional distress and seduction.

In October 1993, Polanski agreed to pay Geimer $500,000 with interest, according to the settlement documents, and was given two years to pay up.

The papers suggest Geimer's attorneys had to fight for the full settlement after the director missed the 1995 deadline. It is not made clear if Polanski paid up in full.

Geimer was just 13 when Polanski plied the aspiring model with alcohol and drugs and then had sex with her in a bedroom at his Chinatown star Jack Nicholson's house.

Polanski was arrested in Los Angeles and pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor, before fleeing to France in 1978.

On Saturday, he was arrested in Zurich, Switzerland in connection with the 31-year-old case and is now fighting extradition to the U.S.

Can you blame Samantha Geimer for wanting the whole Roman Polanski thing to just go away?

The 45-year-old wife and mom, who at 13 was sexually assaulted by the filmmaker, is again pleading with the California justice system to drop the 32-year-old case against Polanski—this time for the sake of her physical and mental health.

All the media attention, first when Polanski petitioned to have the case dropped last year and again since his arrest in Switzerland last month, "has caused her to have health-related issues," attorney Lawrence Silver stated in documents filed with the state's Second District Court of Appeal.

"The pursuit has caused her performance at her job to be interfered with and has caused the understandable displeasure of her employer and the real possibility that Samantha could lose her job," Silver added.

Geimer, who lives in Hawaii, sued Polanski for emotional distress in 1988, 10 years after he fled the U.S. for Europe and never looked back, fearing a judge was planning to renege on the deal he cut with prosecutors that would keep him from serving any significant jail time.

There's no public record of Geimer ever receiving the entire sum she asked for.

Though she couldn't comment on legal specifics, she told the Awful Truth following Polanski's arrest that the press was all over her.

"I can, however, tell you that I have reporters parked outside my home, harassing my family and neighbors, and it is extremely unpleasant," Geimer said.

The once-aspiring actress who was posing for photos on that awful day in 1977 says she has also fielded interview requests from The Oprah Winfrey Show and Larry King Live.

"I have urged that this matter come to a formal legal end," she stated in her first plea for dismissal, filed in January. "I have urged that the district attorney and the court dismiss these charges."

The latest filing also encourages the L.A. Superior Court to reverse its earlier decision to not drop the case.

Polanski, meanwhile, is cooling his heels in Swiss custody while the government mulls over a formal request from the U.S. Justice Department that he be extradited to California to face the music.

One day there will be a film for sure regarding this whole matter.

Do you reckon Roman will direct it? ;)

No way! He shouldn't attach with the project by any means.
In this case even Rob Zombie would be a better choice for the director than Rom Pol.:rolleyes:

Roman Polanski will not be released from prison until next week at the earliest, according to BBC News.

The Oscar-winning director has been in custody in Zurich since September on a 1978 US warrant that was issued after he pleaded guilty to having sex with a 13-year-old girl.

He was granted £2.7 million ($4.5 million) bail by the Swiss Federal Criminal Court this week.

The Swiss Justice Ministry has claimed that his move from jail to his Swiss chalet will not happen until Monday at the earliest because more time is needed to make the necessary arrangements.

The 76-year-old will also be ordered to surrender his passport and must wear an electronic monitoring device.

It has been reported that the bail ruling will not affect the ongoing assessment of whether or not to extradite Polanski to the US.