Legal News

Lawyers won't let Polanski lose his nose in Los Angeles

By Richard Binder

Lawyers for film director Roman Polanski, who fled the country more than 30 years ago on the eve of sentencing for having sex with a minor, asked today that his case be moved from a Los Angeles justice system they say is too seriously tainted by its own misdeeds to treat the Oscar-winning filmmaker fairly.

Monday?s filing comes just one day before a date by which prosecutors were expected to file a response to Mr. Polanski?s request last month that his case be dropped. It seeks review by ?an out-of-county? judicial officer, and argues that ?the entire Los Angeles Superior Court should be disqualified from further hearing this case.?

The filing specifically claims that the court effectively pre-judged a crucial issue in the current dismissal motion ? whether the case can be dropped without Mr. Polanski?s returning to the country. That occurred, the filing claims, when a public information officer, Alan Parachini, last month told the Los Angeles Times in an email that the court had a standing position that dismissal could not be considered unless Mr. Polanski ended his fugitive status.

Read the full story here.

Full post as published by Legal Pad | LA on January 05, 2009 (boomark / email).