Poland to Extradite Filmmaker Roman Polanski to US on SC Approval

Polanski pleaded guilty in 1977 to sex a minor during a photo shoot in Los Angeles, but only spent 42 days in jail.

Roman Polanski. (Photo Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons)

Poland intends to extradite filmmaker Roman Polanski to the United States over a 1977 child sex conviction if the Supreme Court approves the move, the Justice Minister said on Wednesday, in a new twist to a decades-long legal battle.

Zbigniew Ziobro, who also serves as Poland’s Prosecutor General, said on Tuesday that he would appeal to the Supreme Court against an earlier court decision against extraditing the Polish-born Oscar-winning filmmaker.

As Justice Minister, Ziobro would have the final say on extradition.

The United States had requested Polanski’s extradition from Poland after he made a high-profile appearance in Warsaw in 2014. A Polish court rejected the request in October 2015.

But after the staunchly conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party swept to power following an election last October, it merged the posts of Justice Minister and Prosecutor General, giving it more direct control over prosecution.

Ziobro has been a vocal critic of the court’s decision not to extradite Polanski, saying his celebrity status had helped him to escape justice.

Polanski, 82, often visits Poland and has an apartment in the southern Polish city of Krakow but mostly lives in France, so it is unclear how Warsaw would be able to extradite him unless he returned voluntarily.

The Polanski case has been an international cause célèbre for almost four decades, with some demanding harsh punishment and others urging that extradition efforts be dropped.

Polanski pleaded guilty in 1977 to having sex with a 13-year-old girl during a photo shoot in Los Angeles. He served 42 days in jail after a plea bargain, but later fled the US fearing a lengthy sentence if the deal was overruled.

Polanski’s lawyer, Jan Olszewski, said the prosecution’s statements on the case were “misleading” and aimed at politicising the case.

Absolutely, the (prosecution’s) aim is to manipulate public opinion.

Jan Olszewski