Oscar-winning filmmaker Roman Polanski will not stand trial in Los Angeles for allegedly raping a minor in 1973 after both parties’ solicitors negotiated a compromise.
Gloria Allred, the plaintiff’s attorney, confirmed that “the parties agreed upon a settlement of claims to their mutual satisfaction.” The attorney for the director, Alexander Rufus-Isaacs, stated that the case was “settled in the summer” and that it has since been “formally dismissed.”
It took some time before the terms of the settlement were instantly made public. The plaintiff requested damages that were not mentioned.
An individual representing Allred initiated a civil complaint against Polanski in the Los Angeles Superior Court in the previous year. Through the lawsuit, the plaintiff, who has not disclosed her identity to the public, asserted that Polanski had sexually assaulted her after he had provided her with tequila, so “causing her tremendous physical and emotional pain and suffering.”
Polanski’s legal team refuted the claim.
In a statement that was released at the time, Rufus-Isaacs issued the following statement: “Mr. Polanski vehemently denies the allegations that are contained in the lawsuit and believes that the appropriate place to try this case is in the courts.”
Over the course of several decades, another statutory rape case has overshadowed Polanski.
1977 was the year when he was charged with drugging and raping a girl who was 13 years old. Prosecutors and he came to an agreement that he would plead guilty to a lower charge of unlawful intercourse with a minor. He agreed to this. As a sentence, he anticipated receiving a sentence of time served and probation.
Polanski, however, is said to have escaped to Europe in 1978, prior to his conviction. According to the authorities in the United States, he is still considered a fugitive from justice, and efforts to extradite him have been unsuccessful on many occasions.
When the New Hollywood filmmaking rebirth occurred in the late 1960s and 1970s, Polanski was one of the most influential figures in the movement. The films “Rosemary’s Baby” and “Chinatown” are the ones that brought him the most fame. For his work on the Holocaust epic “The Pianist,” he was awarded the Oscar for best director.
Polanski was also etched into the collective consciousness of the nation in 1969, following the murder of Sharon Tate, Polanski’s pregnant wife, along with four other individuals at her residence by members of the Manson family.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences kicked Polanski out of its membership ranks at the beginning of the year 2018.