US Not Giving Up on Nailing Polanski

The US is "deeply disappointed" by the Swiss decision to free film director Roman Polanski, and authorities are considering what action to take, said a Justice Department official. Polanksi, 76, was freed after 9 months under house arrest when the Swiss Justice Ministry refused to comply with America's "flawed" extradition request that the director be sent back to Los Angeles to serve his sentence for sex with a minor, reports CNN. The US "believes that the rape of a 13-year-old child by an adult is a crime," and will continue to seek justice, declared Assistant Secretary of State PJ Crowley.

Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley also vowed to bring Polanski to justice, saying his office "complied fully with the requirements of the extradition treaty." The Swiss cited, among other reasons for their decision, the US refusal to release records of a confidential hearing with the public prosecutor in the case, reports ABC News. Polanski pleaded guilty in 1977 to unlawful sex with a minor after drugging and raping a girl during a photo shoot. He fled the country after a 42-day stint in jail during which he underwent a psychiatric evaluation.
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