A Los Angeles judge privately told lawyers he would renege on a promise and imprison Roman Polanski for having sex with a teenage girl in 1977, a former prosecutor testified, setting the stage for the renowned director to flee the U.S. as a fugitive.
A previously sealed transcript obtained by The Associated Press late Sunday of testimony by retired Deputy District Attorney Roger Gunson supports Polanski's claim that he fled on the eve of sentencing in 1978 because he didn't think he was getting a fair deal.
Braun has unsuccessfully tried that before with prosecutors asserting and judges agreeing that Polanski needs to show up in Los Angeles Superior Court to resolve the matter. Polanski, 88, who was nominated for Oscars for 1974's "Chinatown" and 1979's "Tess," won the best director statuette for "The Pianist" in 2003. But he wasn't able to accept it because he faces arrest in the U.S.
Polanski has argued that there was judicial misconduct in his case. In 2010, a Los Angeles court took sealed testimony from Gunson about his recollections of promises made to the director by the judge in 1977. The judge said that as long as Polanski received a favourable report from the prison, he would serve no additional time, Gunson said.
He said he would send Polanski to prison for a longer term but would then get him released within 120 days, which was possible under sentencing rules at the time.Gunson acknowledged during his testimony that the judge had discretion to sentence Polanski up to 50 years because there had been no agreed-upon sentence. But Gunson objected to the "sham" proceedings the judge was orchestrating and felt he had broken promises to Polanski.
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