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Roman Polanski arrested in 1977...
Roman Polanski arrested in 1977...
Item # 564038
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March 12, 1977
THE DAILY UNION, Junction City, Kansas, March 12, 1977
* Roman Polanski arrested with rape
* Polish film director
This 14 page newspaper has a two column headline on page 3: "Director Polanski accused of rape" with a small photo of Polanski. (see)
Tells of this initial arrest for the rape of the 13 year old girl that has recently gotten attention once again with his re-arrest many years later.
Other news of the day. A few small binding holes along the spine, otherwise in nice condition.
wikipedia notes: On March 11, 1977, Polanski was arrested and charged with a number of offenses against a thirteen-year-old, Samantha Geimer, during an incident the day before at the Hollywood home of actor Jack Nicholson. Geimer testified that Polanski gave her a combination of champagne and quaaludes, a sedative drug and muscle relaxant, and despite her repeated protests and being asked to stop, he performed oral sex, intercourse and sodomy upon her. A grand jury decided to charge him with rape by use of drugs, perversion, sodomy, lewd and lascivious act upon a child under fourteen, and furnishing a controlled substance to a minor.
In an effort to preserve the child's anonymity, Geimer's attorney was reported to have helped arrange a plea bargain which Polanski accepted, and, under the terms, five of the initial charges were to be dismissed. He pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of engaging in unlawful sexual intercourse, a charge which is synonymous under Californian law with statutory rape. The court ordered Polanski to report to prison for a 90-day psychiatric evaluation, and he was subsequently released after 42 days.
In response to the early release, the judge proposed to send Polanski back to jail to finish out the sentence term, to be followed by "voluntary deportation." The expectation was that he would get only probation at the sentencing hearing, with the probation officer, examining psychiatrist and the victim all recommending against jail time. Things changed, however, after an alleged conversation between the judge and the LA Deputy District Attorney, after which the judge "suggested to Polanski's attorneys" that he would imprison and then deport him. Polanski responded by fleeing to France prior to sentencing, where, as a French citizen, Polanski has been protected from extradition.[49] Since then Polanski has mostly lived in France, and he has tended to avoided visiting countries (such as the UK) that were likely to extradite him. Because Polanski fled the court, prior to his sentencing, all six of the original charges are still pending against Polanski.
Geimer sued Polanski in 1988, alleging sexual assault, intentional infliction of emotional distress and seduction. In 1993 Polanski agreed to to pay Geimer at least $500,000 as part of a civil settlement.
On September 26, 2009, Polanski was arrested by Swiss police at Zürich Airport while trying to enter Switzerland, in relation to his outstanding 1978 US arrest warrant. Polanski had hoped to attend the Zurich Film Festival to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award. The Federal Department of Justice and Police said Polanski was put "in provisional detention." Polanski announced that he intends to appeal extradition and hired lawyer Lorenz Erni to represent him. On October 6 his initial request for bail was refused by the Federal Department of Justice and Police; a spokesperson commented, "we continue to be of the opinion that there is a high risk of flight". On October 19, his appeal was rejected by the Federal Criminal Court.
Category: The 20th Century
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