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Should he be sent back to the USA, I would vote yes ! I think that Roman Polanski needs to go to the USA for his punishment.

http://www.hitfix.com/articles/2009-9-2 ... n-sex-case

I agree. The news here says the victim of the molestation doesn't think he should serve his sentance but her opinion doesn't matter to me. That may have been part of the settlement, that she not pursue any further punishment for him. And even if she doesn't mind his molesting children, many of us do.

His supporters have been quoted as saying this whole thing should be disposed of so that he can come back to America. Why, do they have some children they want molested? He's a predator, and I don't want him in MY neighborhood, for sure.

He got a 13-year old child drunk and high for the purpose of using her sexually. That kind of behavior has to have consequences. As for this nonsense about his having been through the holocaust and having his wife stabbed to death so now he should be spared this further difficulty, if he didn't rape children he wouldn't be facing prison. This isn't something that just happened to him, it's the normal consequence of his freely chosen actions and he couldn't have been unaware of it when he decided to rape that child.

I've also seen on the news that some people are saying that because the rape he was convicted for happened 30 years ago we should forget about having him do any prison time. It's not the state's fault he didn't serve his time 30 years ago. It's his own doing. Not incarcerating him for this reason would just encourage other criminals to flee the country before sentencing. Besides. I don't think there's anything in the law guaranteeing a speedy incarceration, especially after you've fled the jurisdiction to avoid exactly that.

Since Polanski did nothing lethal one might think there is a statute of limitations that applies. If Polanski is guilty of banging a thirteen year old girl, he should have been punished at or shortly after. But he wasn't. One might think exile is sufficient punishment. Maybe not. In any case I do not condone what he presumably did, but after a certain amount of time is past, it makes more sense to let sleeping (and exiled) dogs lie.

ruveyn

He had already pled guilty, but fled before sentencing, so the statute of limitations doesn't apply.

As a society we must be very careful about what we do in this case. We are sending one message if we let him go and we are sending another message if we bring him back. Which message is the correct one?

Although I strongly sympathize with the fact that the victim wants it dropped and has already been financially compensated from him and considers it resolved, there is a larger issue too. Criminals will not typically delve into the details of a case like this. They will see that if they are rich, they can flee the country and "get away with it".

I wish there were a way to satisy both ideas. The fact that the victim wants this dropped (and her wishes should be honored) AND the fact that we want to discourage wealthier criminals from fleeing. Perhaps we could prosecute him for the flight instead? What would be the most "fair" outcome?

It would be ironically poetic justice if he gets Chuck Manson as a Cell Mate.

Well I think that he should be put in a closed prison much like a cat A or cat B british jail. He is an escape risk, he has already gone on the run once so I think that a jail with high security is the right thing in his case.

I have no personal hatred of the man but I feel that a man who sexually abuses a 13 year old girl should get years of gaol. If you think that the jail sentance for underage sex is too much then I have a simple solution, do not have sex with underaged girls.

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/co ... 94717.html

Just to lob a curve ball into this discussion; I've been following this case on several news sites, and one issue that keeps on cropping up are allegations of serious misconduct on the part of the presiding judge and a district attorney who wasn't involved in the case (we're taking the sort of misconduct that gets convictions thrown out). It revolved around a plea deal that Polanski made, in which he would plead guilty to the charge of unlawful sex with a minor in exchange for a light sentence (something like time served followed by deportation); a deal which he felt the judge was about the renege on after talking about the case with an uninvolved prosecutor (this seems to be the illegal part). If all of this is true, it could potentially mean that the original conviction is out, and that the man was justified in fleeing a judicial proceeding that was stacked against him (this certainly seems to be the view of the French, and of many of Polanski's fellows in the industry).

What sucks from a justice standpoint is that this whole mess should not have happened; convicting Polanski on a number of charges should have been easy to do by the book, but because several important people played fast and loose with due process, the man may well skate with minimal punishment.

I too believe that he did something wrong but then it seems so did the judicial system. My opinion is that he should be brought back to the states to stand for sentencing BUT the original plea deal (time served and deportation) should stand. That would be the best resolution for all parties.

I think the above is what will happen because if the courts were to try to back out of the deal now, he could probably get the plea taken out which brings the case back up for trial but then I am sure a good lawyer will then call statute of limitations, plus the witness will probably not cooperate at this point.

I know that many here feel what this guy did was wrong and he should go to a medium or maximum security prison but that will never happen at this point.

@demeus: I like that. I also think that would be fair since it was the original idea and seems to satisfy my sense of justice since it was the original "due process" arrangement. Good answer, thanks.

I feel for the woman in question but he had already gotten off with that lame plea deal and should have complied with the bad boy slap on the wrist terms of the deal. Lots of people have hard lifes and don't get 13yrs drunk and rape them.