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Switzerland rejects US extradition of Roman Polanski
http://www.x404.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=9425		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  Amnesia10 [ Mon Jul 12, 2010 2:52 pm ]
Post subject:  Switzerland rejects US extradition of Roman Polanski
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainmen ... 601930.stm

Quote:
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.
Author:  bobbdobbs [ Mon Jul 12, 2010 2:57 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Switzerland rejects US extradition of Roman Polanski
another peadophile escapes justice.
Author:  Paul1965 [ Mon Jul 12, 2010 4:22 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Switzerland rejects US extradition of Roman Polanski
Quote:
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


What's all this about? He fled the US before being jailed, surely that's enough to send him back to the US to at least answer for that. And what is this 'national interest' that's more important than making a rapist face the music? They're worried about damaging their reputation for shielding perverts from justice?
Author:  l3v1ck [ Mon Jul 12, 2010 6:01 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Switzerland rejects US extradition of Roman Polanski
As soon as he visits another country, the Yanks will just get him extradited from there. Quite rightly too.
Author:  Amnesia10 [ Mon Jul 12, 2010 6:45 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Switzerland rejects US extradition of Roman Polanski
l3v1ck wrote:
As soon as he visits another country, the Yanks will just get him extradited from there. Quite rightly too.

Not likely he will be double checking extradition treaties every time now.
Author:  jonbwfc [ Mon Jul 12, 2010 7:52 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Switzerland rejects US extradition of Roman Polanski
Amnesia10 wrote:
l3v1ck wrote:
As soon as he visits another country, the Yanks will just get him extradited from there. Quite rightly too.

Not likely he will be double checking extradition treaties every time now.

He's 75 years old, he's probably not going on long journeys very often anyway.

This strikes me as a two fold thing (and the fact the offense he committed is reprehensible actually fairly irrelevant to both)

1) By the sound of it there has been an administrative foul up somewhere. Extradition cases are very finicky - you have to have all the t's crossed or you don't get it though. Mainly because nobody (other than the UK government it seems) wants to be seen as somebody else's poodle by their own voters.

2) Switzerland is, obviously, a neutral country and an awful lot of it's economy is based around that fact (banking and etc). If the people who use it's facilities think foreign governments can reach in and get them, then they're going to beggar off to one of the caribbean states or somewhere. Switzerland as a nation can't afford to allow extradition unless they absolutely have to because the whole basis of it's economy is based on the fact that on it's soil you are 'safe' from foreign government's influence.

I dare say Polanski knows all this and chose his place of residence accordingly.
Author:  big_D [ Tue Jul 13, 2010 7:49 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Switzerland rejects US extradition of Roman Polanski
bobbdobbs wrote:
another peadophile escapes justice.

And it is America's fault... According to the Swiss court, the extradition was rejected, because the American's refused to supply any information about the offence, all of the documents were classified in America and they wouldn't show the Swiss court any information to back up the extradition request... :?
Author:  big_D [ Tue Jul 13, 2010 7:51 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Switzerland rejects US extradition of Roman Polanski
Paul1965 wrote:
Quote:
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


What's all this about? He fled the US before being jailed, surely that's enough to send him back to the US to at least answer for that. And what is this 'national interest' that's more important than making a rapist face the music? They're worried about damaging their reputation for shielding perverts from justice?

He claimed he has already completed the originally agreed sentence and the USA renaged on the sentence and wanted to sentence him for longer (which is what they should have done in the first place)...

As, according to Polanski, he has already completed the original sentence and the USA won't provide any information to counter that, the Swiss court can't do much.
Author:  Amnesia10 [ Tue Jul 13, 2010 2:07 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Switzerland rejects US extradition of Roman Polanski
big_D wrote:
He claimed he has already completed the originally agreed sentence and the USA renaged on the sentence and wanted to sentence him for longer (which is what they should have done in the first place)...

As, according to Polanski, he has already completed the original sentence and the USA won't provide any information to counter that, the Swiss court can't do much.

Yes I heard that the original plea agreement would settle on time already served as being sufficient, then they changed their minds so he fled. The fact they were not willing to disclose the original agreement shows that this was purely an attempt at a District Attorney to get brownie points for re-election.
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