Switzerland rejects US extradition of Roman Polanski - Polidicks

[url]http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment_and_arts/10601930.stm[/url] [quote=BBC News]Authorities in Switzerland have decided not to extradite film director Roman Polanski to the US to face sentencing for a case dating back to 1977. Polanski, 76, has been under house arrest in his Swiss chalet since December 2009 pending the decision. He is wanted in the US over a conviction for unlawful sex with a 13-year-old girl. Swiss Justice Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf said the "restrictions on his liberty have been lifted." A Swiss official said the US cannot appeal the decision. Polanski faces arrest over his conviction for unlawful sex with an underage girl in 1977 should he ever return to the United States. The director, who was originally charged with six offences including rape and sodomy, pleaded guilty to unlawful sex following a plea bargain. But he left the US in 1978, before he could be sentenced, and has never returned. He was taken into custody in Switzerland in September last year as he travelled from France to collect a lifetime achievement award at the Zurich Film Festival. Polanski, whose films include Rosemary's Baby and The Pianist, was moved from prison and placed under house arrest at his chalet in the resort of Gstaad in early December. [b]'National interests'[/b] The Swiss government declared Polanski a free man on Monday after rejecting the US extradition request. The Swiss said US authorities failed to provide confidential testimony about Polanski's original sentencing procedure. The Justice Ministry also said that national interests were taken into consideration in the decision. A statement said: "The 76-year-old French-Polish film director Roman Polanski will not be extradited to the US. "The freedom-restricting measures against him have been revoked." It added: "The reason for the decision lies in the fact that it was not possible to exclude with the necessary certainty a fault in the US extraditionary request."[/quote]

Wouldn't the statue of limitations been to long at this point?

Wow, I didn't realize that Switzerland was full of kiddy touching perver- wait a second, I just realized why Swiss cheese has so many holes :aaa:

swiss government has more balls than the canadian government at least, but still what the fuck switzerland.

Drugged and raped a 13 year old. Any other man would've been beaten to death by police. Good job, cushion-justice. :geno:

I don't think you can arrest him for this after like more than 30 years.

[QUOTE=Sottalytober;23309824]Wouldn't the statue of limitations been to long at this point?[/QUOTE] He was already convicted, he just fled :D

Why is there even a statute of limitation? It basically says to criminals "if you can evade the authorities for several years you are forgiven". Completely ridiculous. Also, the we need to fly over to Switzerland and capture this pedophile motherfucker.

I think you gentlemen are forgetting that this man wrote and directed Macbeth.

[QUOTE=Reaver1991;23310507]I think you gentlemen are forgetting that this man wrote and directed Macbeth.[/QUOTE] who gives a fuck

[quote] The Swiss said US authorities failed to provide confidential testimony about Polanski's original sentencing procedure.[/quote] He would have been extradited otherwise.

[QUOTE=Penguiin;23310305]Why is there even a statute of limitation? It basically says to criminals "if you can evade the authorities for several years you are forgiven".[/QUOTE] It tends to not apply to things like rape, though. They exist mostly to give people a break if they did something minor a long time ago that went undiscovered.

[QUOTE=Ryenoru;23310059]I don't think you can arrest him for this after like more than 30 years.[/QUOTE] Time holds no power over justice.

Wait what? He made the film The Pianist and he's also a pedophile - I can't get this to work together. I dind't know about this actually!

Time to send in the CIA Assassains. :ninja:

[QUOTE=Penguiin;23310305]Why is there even a statute of limitation? It basically says to criminals "if you can evade the authorities for several years you are forgiven". Completely ridiculous. Also, the we need to fly over to Switzerland and capture this pedophile motherfucker.[/QUOTE] It's more difficult to charge someone with a crime that happen long ago and is usually not worth the hassle, unless it's a serious crime. Asking someone to defend themselves for what happen 30 years ago is very difficult and can make a very unfair and blurry case.

Reminds me of this. [img]http://media.gtanet.com/gtasa/images/characters/eddie_pulaski.jpg[/img]

[url]http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/2009/09/28/2009-09-28_roman_polanskis_victim_now_45_got_over_it_long_ago.html[/url] There we go. She "got over it a long time ago."

This just doesn't seem right. I wish the law had better common sense, people commiting far smaller crimes than this get arrested.

[QUOTE=one free man;23311374]This just doesn't seem right. I wish the law had better common sense, people commiting far smaller crimes than this get arrested.[/QUOTE] It's because he's famous.

"In 1978, he pleaded guilty to unlawful sex following a plea bargain. He served 42 days in a US prison. He has always maintained he was promised a short sentence, but he fled the US after hearing rumours that the judge was about to re-sentence him for a much longer term. He has never returned to the US. " Wow, that sounds pretty odd, you have served your time, but you can get resentenced for longer?

[QUOTE=evilking1;23312083]"In 1978, he pleaded guilty to unlawful sex following a plea bargain. He served 42 days in a US prison. He has always maintained he was promised a short sentence, but he fled the US after hearing rumours that the judge was about to re-sentence him for a much longer term. He has never returned to the US. " Wow, that sounds pretty odd, you have served your time, but you can get resentenced for longer?[/QUOTE] He wasn't sentenced again. He was given 90 days, part of which was at a facility for testing. They released him after 42 saying "we done with the fool", which the judge should have seen coming because they weren't supposed to be keeping him as punishment, just testing. But he didn't, and Polanski got released early. The judge said 90 days = 90 days, and that he'd have to serve the rest of it in another facility. Polanski didn't want to. Polanski can say what he likes- the judge not knowing that they'd release him early was pretty stupid, but he's still just a diva who wanted an excuse to not serve time.