Roman Polanski civil suit scheduled for 2025
A woman who alleges Roman Polanski raped her in 1973 when she was 16 years old filed a civil suit under a California law that extends the statute of limitations for child sexual abuse. She originally filed her lawsuit in May 2023 but his lawyers filed to have her lawsuit tossed in November 2023. Last week, Judge H. Jay Ford III set a trial date of August 4, 2025.
The lawsuit claims that she met him at a party a few months before the assault took place. Polanski later invited her to dinner. When she arrived at his Benedict Canyon home, he gave her two shots of tequila, despite knowing that she was underage. When they got to the restaurant, their table was not ready so they went to the bar and he ordered more tequila for her. After they were seated but before they ate any food, she began to feel dizzy from all the tequila. Feeling ill, she excused herself to the bathroom. When she returned to their table, she told him that she didn't feel well and that she was going outside to get some fresh air. He followed her outside and then drove her to his house. She says she doesn't remember how she got from the car into his house, but she remembers that he took her to his bedroom and she passed out on his bed.
[sensitive content]She remembers waking up to find him lying next to her on the bed next to her and that he said he wanted to have sex with her. She says that although she was groggy, she told him no and said, "Please don’t do this." She says that despite her protests, he removed her clothes and raped her. She says that afterward, he drove her home and she never saw him again.
Background
In 1978, Polanski pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor in exchange for dropping the other charges filed against him for rape by use of drugs, perversion, sodomy, a lewd and lascivious act upon a child under the age of 14, and furnishing a controlled substance to a minor. During the investigation, he was incarcerated for psychological testing for 42 days. On the eve of sentencing, he fled the country. Since then, he has been a fugitive with an international arrest warrant and has lived in France, Switzerland, and Poland. Over the years, his lawyers have filed numerous requests to have the case dismissed, to have the case moved out of Los Angeles courts (which require his presence in order to dismiss a case), and to have Polanski sentenced in absentia.
How is that related to today's news?
In 2017 Samantha Geimer, Polanski's most well known victim, asked a judge to either dismiss the 1978 rape case outright or sentence him to the 42 days he had previously served during the court-ordered psych evaluation. After reading a statement to the court, she told the press, "He got arrested. I knew he was sorry the next day. I was sure he instantly regretted what he had done and wished it hadn’t happened. It just wasn’t as traumatic for me as everyone would like to believe it was. I was a young sexually active teenager and it was a scary thing, but it was not an uncommon thing. I understood much worse things happened to people. So I was just not as traumatized as everybody thinks I should have been. Everyone’s entitled to their opinion. I was there. I am fine. I don’t think that I should be forced to lay my feelings bare and have a pity party for myself just for people’s entertainment, and I’m not going to do it. I am fine.”
As a result of Geimer's request, the plaintiff in the newest lawsuit came forward with her story in August 2017 because she was infuriated. She said, "I’m speaking out now so Samantha and the world will know she is not the only minor Roman Polanski victimized. I am not over it." She said that at the time of the incident, she told one friend what happened but she didn't tell anyone else for fear that her father would “do something that might cause him to go to prison for the rest of his life.” She said in 2017 that she had recently reported the rape to the police and that she hoped any other victims would come forward to report what happened to them.
Jane Doe's impact
In October 2017, two more victims came forward. German actress Renate Langer told Swiss police that Polanski raped her in Gstaad in 1972 when she was 15, and American artist Marianne Barnard accused him of sexually assaulting her in 1975 when she was 10 years old. In November 2019, French actress Valentine Monnier said Polanski violently raped her at his ski chalet in Gstaad in 1975 when she was 18.
related news
Polanski is currently in the midst of a defamation trial. In 2010, British actress Charlotte Lewis came forward with allegations that Polanski sexually assaulted her in Paris in 1983 when she was 16 and he was 50. Her lawsuit claims that he defamed her by calling her sexual assault allegations against him a “heinous lie” in a 2019 interview with Paris Match magazine.
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The lawsuit claims that she met him at a party a few months before the assault took place. Polanski later invited her to dinner. When she arrived at his Benedict Canyon home, he gave her two shots of tequila, despite knowing that she was underage. When they got to the restaurant, their table was not ready so they went to the bar and he ordered more tequila for her. After they were seated but before they ate any food, she began to feel dizzy from all the tequila. Feeling ill, she excused herself to the bathroom. When she returned to their table, she told him that she didn't feel well and that she was going outside to get some fresh air. He followed her outside and then drove her to his house. She says she doesn't remember how she got from the car into his house, but she remembers that he took her to his bedroom and she passed out on his bed.
[sensitive content]She remembers waking up to find him lying next to her on the bed next to her and that he said he wanted to have sex with her. She says that although she was groggy, she told him no and said, "Please don’t do this." She says that despite her protests, he removed her clothes and raped her. She says that afterward, he drove her home and she never saw him again.
Background
In 1978, Polanski pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor in exchange for dropping the other charges filed against him for rape by use of drugs, perversion, sodomy, a lewd and lascivious act upon a child under the age of 14, and furnishing a controlled substance to a minor. During the investigation, he was incarcerated for psychological testing for 42 days. On the eve of sentencing, he fled the country. Since then, he has been a fugitive with an international arrest warrant and has lived in France, Switzerland, and Poland. Over the years, his lawyers have filed numerous requests to have the case dismissed, to have the case moved out of Los Angeles courts (which require his presence in order to dismiss a case), and to have Polanski sentenced in absentia.
How is that related to today's news?
In 2017 Samantha Geimer, Polanski's most well known victim, asked a judge to either dismiss the 1978 rape case outright or sentence him to the 42 days he had previously served during the court-ordered psych evaluation. After reading a statement to the court, she told the press, "He got arrested. I knew he was sorry the next day. I was sure he instantly regretted what he had done and wished it hadn’t happened. It just wasn’t as traumatic for me as everyone would like to believe it was. I was a young sexually active teenager and it was a scary thing, but it was not an uncommon thing. I understood much worse things happened to people. So I was just not as traumatized as everybody thinks I should have been. Everyone’s entitled to their opinion. I was there. I am fine. I don’t think that I should be forced to lay my feelings bare and have a pity party for myself just for people’s entertainment, and I’m not going to do it. I am fine.”
As a result of Geimer's request, the plaintiff in the newest lawsuit came forward with her story in August 2017 because she was infuriated. She said, "I’m speaking out now so Samantha and the world will know she is not the only minor Roman Polanski victimized. I am not over it." She said that at the time of the incident, she told one friend what happened but she didn't tell anyone else for fear that her father would “do something that might cause him to go to prison for the rest of his life.” She said in 2017 that she had recently reported the rape to the police and that she hoped any other victims would come forward to report what happened to them.
Jane Doe's impact
In October 2017, two more victims came forward. German actress Renate Langer told Swiss police that Polanski raped her in Gstaad in 1972 when she was 15, and American artist Marianne Barnard accused him of sexually assaulting her in 1975 when she was 10 years old. In November 2019, French actress Valentine Monnier said Polanski violently raped her at his ski chalet in Gstaad in 1975 when she was 18.
related news
Polanski is currently in the midst of a defamation trial. In 2010, British actress Charlotte Lewis came forward with allegations that Polanski sexually assaulted her in Paris in 1983 when she was 16 and he was 50. Her lawsuit claims that he defamed her by calling her sexual assault allegations against him a “heinous lie” in a 2019 interview with Paris Match magazine.
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