The damned case should have been thrown out years ago when judge's misconduct came to light and with the victim having long since forgiven Polanski. The new evidence mentioned in the documentary is even more reason to throw this case out.
Snip:
His lawyers took pains to label the filing a request that the judge could execute on his own initiative rather than a defense motion, which would probably require the director's presence.
"It is very creative lawyering," said Loyola Law School professor Laurie Levenson. "They want it both ways. They want the court to do it a favor by dismissing the case, but they don't want Mr. Polanski to come here and have to face the music."
A lawyer for Polanski declined to comment on his legal strategy. "The position of Mr. Polanski is fully set forth in the filing," attorney Chad Hummel said.
The request alleges misconduct by a prosecutor and the trial judge and argues that the wrongdoing was so egregious that a judge should clear Polanski "in the interests of justice."
The director said he had intercourse with a 13-year-old girl in 1977 but left the country after Judge Lawrence Rittenband, now deceased, announced plans to sentence Polanski to prison over the wishes of the victim and the recommendation of the Probation Department. In an HBO documentary televised in June, a former deputy district attorney who believed Polanski should get prison time acknowledged having backroom discussions with the judge about what sentence the director should receive.
Throw the damned case out.
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