The two answers reflect two different attitudes, but a short history of Roman Polanski's background helps in explaining the two different responses.
According to Biography.com, Roman Polanski was born in 1933 in France. His family moved to Poland (Polanski has dual citizenship – Poland and France) when he was three-years-old, but five years later the Polanski family was separated under harrowing circumstances. In the first of several major tragedies in Roman Polanski’s life, his mother and father were captured by Nazi authorities.
Polanski’s parents were “imprisoned in various Nazi concentration camps, where his mother eventually died in Aushwitz” (2009). During this time Polanski lived with different Polish families until 1944 when he was reunited with his father.
Major Events in Roman Polaski’s Life
By the age of 35, Polanski had moved to the United States. In 1967 he married actress Sharon Tate, and a year later he directed the movie Rosemary’s Baby. But despite his success in Hollywood, he was still dogged by tragedy. His pregnant wife Sharon Tate and four houseguests were murdered on 1969 by members of Charles Manson’s cult. The scene was especially gruesome as the 8 eight-months pregnant Tate had been stabbed 16 times.
Roman Polanski dealt with the aftermath of the tragedy and continued his movie directing career. In 1974 he directed Chinatown (nominated for 11 Academy Awards) and the movie won the award for best screenwriting. But tragedy struck again in 1977; this time, however, the tragedy was of Polanski’s own making. He's accused of having sexual intercourse with a 13-year-old girl whom he was photographing.
Polanski – Sex Crime
The 44-year-old Polanski was arrested for raping the 13-year-old girl, and he pleaded guilty to “one charge of unlawful sexual intercourse and underwent six weeks of psychiatric evaluation at a state prison in California. Although additional criminal charges were still pending, Polanski fled the United States after his discharge...he continued to face the possibility of prison if he returned to America” (Biography.com). For 32 years, Polanski has avoided U.S. authorities.
Polanski as a Fugitive
After fleeing the United States Roman Polanski did not live the life of the proverbial “hunted criminal” or fugitive from the law. Instead, Polanski lived a rather upscale life:
- He married actress, Emmanuelle Seigner in 1989, and they have two children.
- He has continued to direct movies and his latest, The Ghost, was slated for a release in 2010.
- In 2002, Roman Polanski won the Academy award for best director for The Pianist. He could not attend the awards ceremony in the United States because he would have been arrested.
- Polanski has continued to receive awards for his work. In fact, he was going to Switzerland to accept an award on September 26, 2009 when he was arrested for the crime committed in the United States in 1977.
- “on his way to an awards ceremony in Zurich, Switzerland, he was arrested by Swiss police and is currently in a legal battle with U.S. law enforcement for his extradition to America. Meanwhile, the production of his film (The Ghost) is on indefinite hold” (Biography.com).
He resided in France for the past 32 years avoiding apprehension because France does not allow extradition of its citizens.
An Unlikely Ally
Roman Polanski’s 13-year-old victim, Samantha Geimer – now a 45-year-old woman with two children, says that Roman Polanski has “suffered enough” (Good Morning America interview, 2003). According to transcripts from a 2003 interview on Larry King Live, the following exchange occured as Geimer and her attorney were interviewed:
KING: Maybe it's because of the years, but neither of you feel particularly angry at Roman Polanski.
GEIMER: No. Not anymore. Not even then. I mean, it just...
KING: No?
GEIMER: Well, yes, I was angry because he was the cause of the publicity and the publicity was the worst thing that ever happened to me. (CNN Transcript, 2003)
Geimer states that the publicity was “the worst thing that ever happened” to her. She adds in a more recent interview from ABC that she believes Roman Polansi has “suffered enough.” And according to a report by Linda Deutsch, Geimer filed a formal request for prosecutors to drop charges against Polanski in January 2009.
Incidentally Geimer filed a civil suit against Polanski and settled out of court. Nonetheless, some victim advocates are at odds with Geimer’s dismissal of Polanski’s offense. The second part of this article explores the protestations of victim advocates.
References
Roman Polanski biography. (2009). Biography.com
Buchwald, E., Fletcher, P., Roth, M. (ed.). (2005). Transforming a rape culture. Milkweed. Minneapolis, Minn.
Crumely, B. (2009). Polanski’s arrest: why the French are outraged.
Deutsch, L. (2009). Roman Polanski Victim Urges Case Dismissal. Huffington Post.
Fitzpatrick, L. (2009). Fugitive Filmmaker Roman Polanski. Two Minute Biography. Time Magazine.
CNN transcripts. (2003). Interview with Samantha Geimer. CNN.com
Kennedy, H. (2009). Roman Polanski's victim Samantha Geimer, now 45, 'got over it long ago.' NY Daily News.com
Polanski’s victim speaks about rape. (January 30, 2003). Good Morning America Interview. ABC News.go.com
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