Commenters from around the country and world are wanting to lynch Polanski, and never mind the pesky facts surrounding his fleeing the United States. From this link is a rare comment of sanity:
Many of the details of this case are frequently overlooked, ignored or lost in the mists of time. At the time of the original case, BOTH Polanski's defense attorney, the prosecuting district attorney, Roger Gunson, the probation office report and the victim's family argued for a plea bargain. At the time of the case, no one initially wanted prison time for Polanski except publicity-crazy and often unpredictable Judge Laurence J. Rittenband. Rittenband changed his mind at the last minute with regard to Polanski's punishment. All sides had agreed that Polanski would serve only 90 days in Chino during a psychiatric evaluation. After 42 days and a psychiatric evaluation of "normal," prison authorities released Polanski fearing for his life and safety. Infuriated and fearing he would be accused for being "soft on crime," Rittenband announced to the lawyers that he planned to put Polanski back in prison contradicting what had been previously agreed upon. Polanski fled to France in 1978 while awaiting sentencing when it became apparent that Rittenband was going to ignore the terms of Polanski's original plea agreement . Subsequent to Polanski's fleeing the US there have been numerous allegations of serious prosecutorial violations including serious violations by Rittenband. The victim received an undiclosed settlement from Polanski and wants the case dismissed. This case will sadly become an international mess, will cost thousands and will ultimately be dismissed. In the meantime it serves as a catnip for a celebrity starved culture.
For those idiots who think it is not Samantha Geimer's case but the state's, how the fuck is the state going to prosecute an ancient case where the victim is not going to be of help in their case, as she wants it dropped? It ain't gonna happen, folks, no matter how much fake outrage there is over this "child molester" getting off the hook.
Not to mention a total waste of taxpayers' money in a state which is damned near broke:
Meanwhile, Polanski's victim, Samantha Geimer, long ago announced that she had forgiven the filmmaker for his transgressions and supported various efforts to have the case against him dismissed. I don't think that you'd find many people who would approve of Polanski's behavior, which was disgusting -- he drugged his victim with Champagne and Quaaludes before raping her during a 1977 photo session at Jack Nicholson's house.
But at a time when California is shredding the safety net that protects the poor and the unemployed, not to mention the budget of the public school system, you'd hope that L.A. County prosecutors had better things to do than cause an international furor by hounding a film director for a 32-year-old sex crime, especially one that Polanski's victim wants to put behind her. As Marina Zenovich's 2008 documentary, "Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired," ably chronicled, the original prosecution of Polanski was marred by all sorts of embarrassing missteps and strange behavior, largely by Laurence Rittenband, the original presiding judge.
This damned thing needs to be dropped.
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In case you care to read the From the Wilderness editor Michael Ruppert's sexual harassment case, in which a former employee was awarded damages, it is here.
The meat of the decision is on page 32, with the facts, etc.
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