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Jan 6, 2009 12:06 pm US/Pacific
Prosecutors Oppose Polanski Bid For Rape Dismissal
LOS ANGELES (AP) ―
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Film director Roman Polanski is known as much for his tumultuous personal life as he is his films. His wife, Sharon Tate, was murdered by Charles Manson in 1969. In 1978, he was convicted in California of having sex with a 13-year-old girl.
AP
Movie director Roman Polanski's bid to have a 31-year-old rape charge against him dismissed was challenged Tuesday by prosecutors in documents that included the most graphic account yet of his sexual activity with a 13-year-old girl.
Prosecutors said Polanski's motion should be denied outright, adding his claims of judicial misconduct cannot be heard in court unless he returns to the United States.
As a fugitive, Polanski would risk arrest if he entered the country. He fled in 1977 after pleading guilty to unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor. He has lived in self-imposed exile in France since then. His lawyers have suggested the matter can be argued without his presence.
Poland-born Polanski has been living in self-imposed exile from the United States since his fleeing in 1978 after being charged with having sex with a teenage girl. He also hasn't visited Britain for fear of extradition.
Polanski has continued to direct films while in exile, including the Holocaust drama "The Pianist," which won an Oscar in 2003.
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