Roman Polanski Really Wishes This Whole Being A Fugitive From Justice Thing Was Over Already
As Noel said in his review a while back, Roman Polanski: Wanted & Desired was an interesting documentary simply because it attempted to shine a light on some of the forgotten legal details of the Polanski rape case–namely that the judge was, by all accounts, a bad judge and a bit of a showboat who was perfectly willing to bend and shape and prolong Polanski's sentencing simply because he wanted to remain in the media spotlight. None of that, however, excused Polanski's terrible, terrible crime, or the fact that he chose to flee from justice (and, yes, justice in this case came in the form of a less-than-judicious judge: those are the breaks) rather than face it.
According to the documentary, here's what happened: Polanski pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual intercourse with a (13-year-old) minor—in order to avoid a trial on host of other charges like Rape, Sodomy, and giving drugs to child—and the judge, rather than sentencing him right away, ordered Polanski to undergo a psychiatric evaluation for 90 days. Polanski served 42 of those days before fleeing the country to avoid the wrath of this showboating judge, and since has been a fugitive (albeit an Oscar-winning fugitive).
Today, the New York Times is reporting that Polanski's lawyers are trying to get the LA District Attorney's office to review the decades-old rape case, and possibly dismiss it, based on some of the information and interviews in the film:
In general, [Polanski's lawyer] acknowledged, fugitives have little standing to press conventional appeals. But, he said, California law would permit either a judge or the prosecutor's office to seek remedies on behalf of Mr. Polanski, including dismissal of the case, if either believed the judicial process had been corrupted.