Let sleeping dogs lie

I've been wondering what, as a practical matter, prompted Roman Polanski's arrest 32 years after he fled the U.S. This article from today's ABA Journal, entitled "Roman Polanski's Lawyers Reportedly Provoked His Arrest" (click here), may provide an answer. The article states that, in a suit filed in a California appeals court to overturn Mr. Polanski's conviction, the lawyers asserted, "'no effort' has been made to extradite Polanski. The filing claimed prosecutors were seeking to benefit by their own inaction by arguing the effort to overturn the plea could not be pursued without Polanski's presence." The assertion "led prosecutors to look for a new opportunity to extradite the director. He was arrested at an airport in Zurich on Saturday as he entered Switzerland to receive an award at a film festival." The story hasn't played out yet, but this may be a situation where Mr. Polanski and his attorneys should have let sleeping dogs lie.

As a side note, it's fascinating how this case has split commentators into two camps, those who think the arrest is warranted (for example, here) and those who think it's not (for example, here). For whatever it's worth, I find it difficult to feel sorry for Mr. Polanski.

Tags: Criminal Law, Appeals