This may not be a popular opinion, but why is CA so insistent on getting Polanski??

[FlightlessDuck]

The victim relives the nightmare and suffers each and every time this 30 y/o event is brought up. But whenever that is mentioned, the argument shifts to, "But he broke a LAAAAAAW!!"

Following this logic, you end up with rapists who are not punished because their victims don't want to testify. Is that OK?

 

[Sanchez]

Which is exactly my point. If the man was/is a pedophile, and pedophiles cannot be cured, then in the 30 years since there would have been at least one more instance involving Pulanski. Good Grief - look at Michael Jackson and the hell he went through with his pedophelia. All the money in the world couldn't shut that stuff up. And Pulanski didn't have near the millions that MJ had.

I'm doubting that Pulanski is a pedophile. As I said, the facts have been twisted so much in the past 30 years that it's now just more drama so people can have some kind of justification for allowing the lizard brain to take over their higher reasoning functions.

Must be a slow news day.

What exactly is your point?

You might want to read the transcript of the plea agreement. http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2009/0928091polanskiplea1.html

Polanski admits that he had sex with a thirteen year old girl. That he committed a felony. That the judge did not have to agree with the sentencing recommendation. That he could go to prison. That he understood the ramifications of his guilty plea. That he had enough time to consult with his lawyer.

The facts have not been twisted. All that remains is sentencing.

A little knowledge helps to exercise those higher reasoning functions.

 

[undertheradar]

Which brings me right back to the fact that you care less about the well-being of that child, now woman, than you do about your own righteous indignation and sense of wanting to get even somehow for something that NEVER had anything to do with you in the first place. The victim relives the nightmare and suffers each and every time this 30 y/o event is brought up. But whenever that is mentioned, the argument shifts to, "But he broke a LAAAAAAW!!" gnash gnash gnash, light the torch, pick up the pitchfork, kill the ogre, lather, rinse, repeat.

Which brings back the issue that if the victim wants the case dropped, why is the district attorney still devoting money and resources to it? No matter what anyone here states, the only victim is the one who was raped! Society has not suffered any emotional or physical pain or loss.

 

[bdoyledimou]

What is the purpose of a prison in the US?

Is it punishment, penance, or protection of the public from the offender?

Some people believe that sending a person to a 12X4 room for 20 years is all three of these.

You take the offender away from the populace and you "save" them from the offenders deeds.
In the mean time, the offender "learns his lesson" by being punished and stuck in a cell for 20 years, and with hard labor, they pay their debt back to society.

But in the case of Polanksi.. the populace has been free from him for 30 years, and he has (apparently) paid a cash settlement (his penance).

So all that is left is the learn his lesson part, and that's what people refer to as "justice". I can see it being a uch needed psychological closure, except it's being demanded by people not even associated with the event at all.

Yes he should go to jail to serve his sentence, but i can see that other side that the costs involved don't really provide any true benefits to anyone except the prosecutor.

 

[Mermaid02]

Well, that may be your point and the point of everyone else who leans towards torches, pitchforks and hangman's nooses whenever anyone brings up this subject (again and again - what? Is it sweeps week or something?). But it strengthens my argument that perhaps the facts have been played loose and fancy free for dramatic effect in order to activate the emotions of those who would be easily manipulated with a few choice words.

My opinion is that this case is 30 years old, the victim is punished each and every time it's brought up, and it's obvious that those who are fake vomiting here because they can't stand that Roman Pulanski hasn't been castrated yet don't truly care about victims of child molestation at all. They only care about the politically correct noises they're making to somehow prove how much they care about victims of child molestation. That, or the gnashing of teeth and expressing righteous indignation satisfies some sense of drama within them. Take your pick.
Back in the real world, I think the state of CA should probably drop this thing. It's been 30 years; there have been no other 'victims'; CA is bankrupt and should spend their money on helping the people living there now rather than going after 30 y/o dead cases; Pulanski will never be sentenced to any jail time; it's a lose/lose for everyone involved except for the masses in the media and on bulletin boards screaming for fresh blood.

This is one of the MOST offensive things I have ever read on these boards. YOU HAVE NO IDEA how many posters have been effected by childhood sexual abuse. I read one statistic that said 25% of girls are molested before they are the age of consent- it was years ago and it wouldn't surprise me if the figure were now higher. This is a crime that HUMILIATES it's victims and it goes unreported the vast majority of the time. The statement you made above makes me sick.

 

[crashbb]

What is the purpose of a prison in the US?

Is it punishment, penance, or protection of the public from the offender?

Some people believe that sending a person to a 12X4 room for 20 years is all three of these.

You take the offender away from the populace and you "save" them from the offenders deeds.
In the mean time, the offender "learns his lesson" by being punished and stuck in a cell for 20 years, and with hard labor, they pay their debt back to society.

But in the case of Polanksi.. the populace has been free from him for 30 years, and he has (apparently) paid a cash settlement (his penance).

So all that is left is the learn his lesson part, and that's what people refer to as "justice". I can see it being a uch needed psychological closure, except it's being demanded by people not even associated with the event at all.

Yes he should go to jail to serve his sentence, but i can see that other side that the costs involved don't really provide any true benefits to anyone except the prosecutor.

No. The US has been free of him. Unless he only rapes American girls, he wasn't somewhere "safe".

 

[luvmy3]

This is one of the MOST offensive things I have ever read on these boards. YOU HAVE NO IDEA how many posters have been effected by childhood sexual abuse. I read one statistic that said 25% of girls are molested before they are the age of consent- it was years ago and it wouldn't surprise me if the figure were now higher. This is a crime that HUMILIATES it's victims and it goes unreported the vast majority of the time. The statement you made above makes me sick.

ITA, and while its said that opinions are never wrong, that pp has no idea just how wrong hers is.

 

[Tinkermommy]

What is the purpose of a prison in the US?

Is it punishment, penance, or protection of the public from the offender?

Some people believe that sending a person to a 12X4 room for 20 years is all three of these.

You take the offender away from the populace and you "save" them from the offenders deeds.
In the mean time, the offender "learns his lesson" by being punished and stuck in a cell for 20 years, and with hard labor, they pay their debt back to society.

But in the case of Polanksi.. the populace has been free from him for 30 years, and he has (apparently) paid a cash settlement (his penance).

So all that is left is the learn his lesson part, and that's what people refer to as "justice". I can see it being a uch needed psychological closure, except it's being demanded by people not even associated with the event at all.

Yes he should go to jail to serve his sentence, but i can see that other side that the costs involved don't really provide any true benefits to anyone except the prosecutor.

I also think that prison should be a deterrent as well.

If you let Polanski go you are in effect saying, "flee the country and play a waiting game and we will forget about you." It will only encourage more people to do so.

And I don't think he has been punished or learned his lesson either.

 

[tonilea]

Which brings back the issue that if the victim wants the case dropped, why is the district attorney still devoting money and resources to it? No matter what anyone here states, the only victim is the one who was raped! Society has not suffered any emotional or physical pain or loss.

In such crimes the victim does not press charges, the state does. We don't want criminals to think they can intimidate witnessess or victims and get the charges dropped, so the state presses charges. It is for the benefit of the victim and the people.


I don't know about the rest of you, but I speak with my money. I won't watch movies that Roman Polanksi is involved with. Since he continues to be a sought after director, it seems most people don't agree.

 

[cteddiesgirl]

Which brings me right back to the fact that you care less about the well-being of that child, now woman, than you do about your own righteous indignation and sense of wanting to get even somehow for something that NEVER had anything to do with you in the first place. The victim relives the nightmare and suffers each and every time this 30 y/o event is brought up. But whenever that is mentioned, the argument shifts to, "But he broke a LAAAAAAW!!" gnash gnash gnash, light the torch, pick up the pitchfork, kill the ogre, lather, rinse, repeat.

Both of my nieces were molested by their mother's boyfriend. He didn't go to jail because of this. He went to jail because he violated a previous probation that my sister didn't know about. Who did they go after instead?
My sister. Because he lied about her supposedly knowing about what was going on and the prosecuter wanted to make a name for herself. So my sister lost custody of both her daughters. Was denied to have any contact at all with the older daughter for 2 years. The older daughter still goes through this every day and she's now almost 25. The younger one can't remember it because she was so young.
My best friend was molested quite a few times by an older cousin of hers when she was a child. Then, as a teen, was raped at gunpoint by a so-called friend. She also lives with this every day of her life.

Trust me. I do care about the victim. She's living with it every day of her life already.

The man was convicted of a crime and never faced sentencing. She has nothing to do with this now. She's done her part concerning him. She now only has to go on living her own life. Unfortunately, the man who did her harm is still living free to do what he wants. She probably never wants to travel to Europe because he's there living free to do whatever he wants outside of the US.

 

[Handbag Lady]

In such crimes the victim does not press charges, the state does. We don't want criminals to think they can intimidate witnessess or victims and get the charges dropped, so the state presses charges. It is for the benefit of the victim and the people.


I don't know about the rest of you, but I speak with my money. I won't watch movies that Roman Polanksi is involved with. Since he continues to be a sought after director, it seems most people don't agree.

I agree with you. I also refuse to see his movies (or pay for them, depending).

I do not understand why people think he's "suffered enough." He hasn't at all and has yet to pay for a crime in which he's admitted guilt.

 

[Pigeon]

I think it's sort of a ridiculous waste of tax dollars to go after this creep, too, given all the time that has passed and that the victim wants the case dropped.

With the amount of money that law enforcement has spent on this issue, they could have gone after a boatload of offenders. I can't help but believe that it's an ego thing for the prosecutor, and I'm sure there are many cold cases than never get another moment's though.

 

[BlueIrish]

He was found guilty. He is guilty, he fled the country and should be sitting inside folsom prison not some mountain top villa. Bring him back.

 

[tonilea]

I think it's sort of a ridiculous waste of tax dollars to go after this creep, too, given all the time that has passed and that the victim wants the case dropped.

With the amount of money that law enforcement has spent on this issue, they could have gone after a boatload of offenders. I can't help but believe that it's an ego thing for the prosecutor, and I'm sure there are many cold cases than never get another moment's though.

It seems more a "he can't get away with this just because he is a wealthy, much acclaimed director" thing to me. Regular people need to feel like the law is applied to the wealthy the same way it is applied to them.

 

[castleview]

Since the victim has requested numerous times to have the entire case dropped, our state continues to spend taxpayer dollars on this 30+ year old case. If the victim wants nothing to do with the court case anymore, doesn't it seem strange that the prosecuter refuses to drop it?

No. If a rapist get away with one rape, what's to stop him from committing another one. I'd hate to see another victim hurt because the previous victim wanted it left alone.

 

[Poppinsme]

it's obvious that those who are fake vomiting here because they can't stand that Roman Pulanski hasn't been castrated yet don't truly care about victims of child molestation at all. They only care about the politically correct noises they're making to somehow prove how much they care about victims of child molestation. That, or the gnashing of teeth and expressing righteous indignation satisfies some sense of drama within them. Take your pick.

By the way its spelled POLANSKI.

Well I do care about molested children as I was one myself at the age of 13 by a pedophile.
And I am involved with many groups stopping this.
One of them being the on line watchdog "Perverted Justice".
I also work in health care and at a Children's hospital.

Your post is inflammatory and but I would expect nothing less from you.

 

[Pigeon]

Regular people need to feel like the law is applied to the wealthy the same way it is applied to them.

It very rarely is, and going after this guy won't change that.

 

[ford family]

Academic now, Switzerland has denied extradition "due to the failure of the US authorities to provide confidential testimony about his sentencing procedure"

ford family

 

[LuvOrlando]

I'm pretty stunned over the number of people who are actually advocating that a child rapist be let off the hook because, as far as i can tell, #1, it only happened once so what's the harm and #2, it's an inconvenient expense so lets cut our losses.

I don't think a smiley exists for what's going though my head so let me just say that any kid subjected to violence lives a lifelong sentence. My DH mistakenly woke me up this morning at 5:45 when he was going to work. Unfortunately, my head doesn't live in a Swiss chalet and the moment the world quiets down I'm back as a little kid stuck in whatever horror my mind decides to leave me and it's got quite a number of memories to choose from. This has been my entire life. When I was really young I drank but eventually I realized chemicals just made me more likely to make mistakes so I found other coping mechanisms like TV, books, books on tape anything. Today I tried to sleep but my mind kept bringing me places i didn't want to be tossed and i turned and I cried and then I get up and watched something on Netflix so i can quiet my head. Anytime I'm alone can bring tears because when my head is left to wander it always finds sad places to be, doing laundry or driving for a long road trip can be agonizing. Anyone who thinks that woman has gotten over what she endured at 13 is 100% out of their minds, she's just trying to quiet it down which is the best that can be hoped for. I get why the victim might want it to go away but the idea that anyone else out there isn't enraged is mind numbing to me. YOU are a part of the problem and nothing anyone can say will ever change my mind about that. Angry doesn't even begin to cover how I feel about some of the posts here.

PS- I'm not saying we should go to war over it. I am saying that claiming it's no big deal is really messed up.

 

[okeydokey]

I'm pretty stunned over the number of people who are actually advocating that a child rapist be let off the hook because, as far as i can tell, #1, it only happened once so what's the harm and #2, it's an inconvenient expense so lets cut our losses.

I don't think a smiley exists for what's going though my head so let me just say that any kid subjected to violence lives a lifelong sentence. My DH mistakenly woke me up this morning at 5:45 when he was going to work. Unfortunately, my head doesn't live in a Swiss chalet and the moment the world quiets down I'm back as a little kid stuck in whatever horror my mind decides to leave me and it's got quite a number of memories to choose from. This has been my entire life. When I was really young I drank but eventually I realized chemicals just made me more likely to make mistakes so I found other coping mechanisms like TV, books, books on tape anything. Today I tried to sleep but my mind kept bringing me places i didn't want to be tossed and i turned and I cried and then I get up and watched something on Netflix so i can quiet my head. Anytime I'm alone can bring tears because when my head is left to wander it always finds sad places to be, doing laundry or driving for a long road trip can be agonizing. Anyone who thinks that woman has gotten over what she endured at 13 is 100% out of their minds, she's just trying to quiet it down which is the best that can be hoped for. I get why the victim might want it to go away but the idea that anyone else out there isn't enraged is mind numbing to me. YOU are a part of the problem and nothing anyone can say will ever change my mind about that. Angry doesn't even begin to cover how I feel about some of the posts here.

PS- I'm not saying we should go to war over it. I am saying that claiming it's no big deal is really messed up.

Wishing you peace.