Roman Polanski and the Little People

Every few months, my local newspaper The Gainesville Sun puts out a special section in which every convicted sex offender living in the county is prominently displayed, with their pictures and current addresses. There are some pretty vicious types included here, but there are also plenty of borderline cases as well. For example, often it happens that a young adult male will have a sexual relationship with a girl in her late teens (but under 18). Usually nothing comes of this, but if a disgruntled relative chooses to file a complaint, that young man can come out of the experience with his life essentially ruined, cast as a sex offender alongside the forcible rapists and child molesters. And usually, such a person is not in a position of wealth or influence to manipulate the legal system with high-priced attorneys or special plea deals. With this in mind, let's go look at Roman Polanski's legal situation.

Roman Polanski is a famous, critically-acclaimed, and award-winning film director whose personal life has been scarred by terrible tragedies. His mother was a victim of Hitler's atrocities at Auschwitz and his wife, actress Sharon Tate, was brutally murdered by the Manson gang in 1969. But in 1977, Polanski pleaded guilty to having sex with a 13-year old girl (which is statutory rape) in California. He claimed that he had struck a plea bargain with the presiding judge, who subsequently went back on the deal. Polanski then fled the country and hasn't returned since. This past weekend, the 76-year old director was arrested in Switzerland and will undergo extradition hearings for his return to the United States.

From what I have read in the Associated Press article in front of me, Polanski's victim, Samantha Geimer, had reached a settlement with him many years ago over the incident and wants all charges dropped. And that incident did happen 32 years ago, with Polanski now in his late seventies, by all accounts a reasonably-advanced age.

But what about the poorer and less-connected folks who have paid their debts to society but have to bear the stigma of their crimes for the rest of their humble lives? Sounds like a major example of a double standard here. I have nothing personally against Mr. Polanski, and I thought his 1974 movie Chinatown was one of the greatest films ever made. His tragic personal life elicits sympathy from me, as well it should from all of us. But justice should be blind and fair. If others are forced to carry an enormous burden for their crimes, even after they have served their sentences, then this fugitive should at least be forced to show some public accountability for his. Instead, I see him surrounded by slavish admirers who are indignant about their idol's arrest, and who apparently think (and may be correct) that there are two sets of laws: one for the "little people", and one for celebrities like Roman Polanski.