One of those ironic cases in life is the arresting of Roman Polansky. After being indicted, and I believe, sentenced for rape (or was it statutory rape?) of a then 13 year old girl. This was in 1978. Some 30 years later the U.S. Government wants him back to process him and send him to jail for some 50 years.
On one hand, I don't know the circumstances within which the whole thing happened, whether Mr. Polansky was really tricked into it or not, whether he knew that the girl was only 13 or not. I do believe that it was wrong from him to feel the justice and not serve the time that then was imposed upon him. Tricked or not, if he commited a crime he should pay for it.
On the other hand, it has been 30 years, the victim already declined to pursue the case, why does the Government wants to keep pushing on it? Certainly the escaping of Mr. Polansky, him doing so many great movies and getting known around the world must have been a stain in their record, a very notorious one. For years Mr. Polansky must have been regarded as the "poster boy" for how to elude the American Law and live a long and successful life. Now, with many friends and many movies of great quality and awesome narrative, he has found himself a huge crew that will support him, or at least would do and say anything to keep him from jail so he can continue making movies.
I love his movies, and he's actually one of my favorite directors, along with Woody Allen, but I do believe that he must pay if he did something wrong, or at least he's entitled to a fair trial. However what strikes me as ironic is that not long ago there was an article in the Washington Post, I believe, saying that hundreds of sex offenders walk out there free with a poor parole follow up, or even no follow up. So, on one hand you have a celebrity, a notorious sex offender that commited one crime, how's been chased down and arrested, though he hasn't committed any other crime in 30 years, but then you have priests with criminal records raping children, dozens of them for years, protected by the Church, within the American soil, and the Govenment does close to nothing. You have Sex offenders abducting children, raping them, sometimes even killing them, fathering children with them, on American soil for years, and no one stops them. You have sex offenders that plead for liberty under parole, get it granted and then they go back to raping, and no one stops them. So what's the message? The Government only catches those who are easier to catch, no matter that these are no longer those making damage?
There's a serious need, not so much of a reform of the law, but a reform of the ways of thinking and acting of those in charge of law enforcement.
On one hand, I don't know the circumstances within which the whole thing happened, whether Mr. Polansky was really tricked into it or not, whether he knew that the girl was only 13 or not. I do believe that it was wrong from him to feel the justice and not serve the time that then was imposed upon him. Tricked or not, if he commited a crime he should pay for it.
On the other hand, it has been 30 years, the victim already declined to pursue the case, why does the Government wants to keep pushing on it? Certainly the escaping of Mr. Polansky, him doing so many great movies and getting known around the world must have been a stain in their record, a very notorious one. For years Mr. Polansky must have been regarded as the "poster boy" for how to elude the American Law and live a long and successful life. Now, with many friends and many movies of great quality and awesome narrative, he has found himself a huge crew that will support him, or at least would do and say anything to keep him from jail so he can continue making movies.
I love his movies, and he's actually one of my favorite directors, along with Woody Allen, but I do believe that he must pay if he did something wrong, or at least he's entitled to a fair trial. However what strikes me as ironic is that not long ago there was an article in the Washington Post, I believe, saying that hundreds of sex offenders walk out there free with a poor parole follow up, or even no follow up. So, on one hand you have a celebrity, a notorious sex offender that commited one crime, how's been chased down and arrested, though he hasn't committed any other crime in 30 years, but then you have priests with criminal records raping children, dozens of them for years, protected by the Church, within the American soil, and the Govenment does close to nothing. You have Sex offenders abducting children, raping them, sometimes even killing them, fathering children with them, on American soil for years, and no one stops them. You have sex offenders that plead for liberty under parole, get it granted and then they go back to raping, and no one stops them. So what's the message? The Government only catches those who are easier to catch, no matter that these are no longer those making damage?
There's a serious need, not so much of a reform of the law, but a reform of the ways of thinking and acting of those in charge of law enforcement.
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