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Polanski’s victim pleads to end case: ‘He owes me nothing

K

KSweeley

Member
Link: https://apnews.com/c96c47acf9724da9...ictim-pleads-to-end-case:-'He-owes-me-nothing'

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Roman Polanski’s sexual assault victim made an impassioned plea Friday to end the fugitive director’s four-decade legal saga, saying she felt more abused by the legal justice system than by the man who she said drugged, raped and sodomized her when she was 13.

“The trauma of the ordeal that followed was so great that, you know, the brief encounter with him that evening that was unpleasant just faded and paled,” Samantha Geimer said outside a courtroom in Los Angeles Superior Court. “It just wasn’t as traumatic for me as everybody would like to believe it was.”

Geimer asked Judge Scott Gordon to either dismiss the case outright or sentence the Oscar winner to the six weeks he served in prison during a court-ordered evaluation before he fled the country on the eve of sentencing in 1978.

“I implore you to consider taking action to finally bring this matter to a close as an act of mercy to myself and my family,” Geimer said.

She also called for an end to “a 40-year sentence which has been imposed on the victim of a crime as well as the perpetrator.”

In downplaying the crime and saying she empathized with Polanski, Geimer took a position at odds with some sexual assault victims. Victims and their advocates have been outspoken recently about lenient sentences in sex abuse cases.

Gordon, who praised Geimer for her courage and elegant words, said he would take the matter under consideration.

Geimer, 54, had long supported Polanski’s efforts to end the case that limits his movements to three European countries, but it was the first time she spoke in favor of him in court.

She said she had suffered four decades of insults and mistreatment and has been hounded by the news media.

The original judge in the case asked if she was part of a mother-daughter prostitution team, the former district attorney suggested she had been paid off and others said she was a lying gold digger and a drug-dealing Lolita who trapped Polanski.

She said does not dismiss Polanski’s responsibility and does not view him as a victim, but has empathy for the way he’s been treated by the legal system and feels his family has suffered.

“I’m standing here saying he’s served his sentence,” Geimer said after the hearing. “He owes me nothing. He owes the state of California nothing except to show up here eventually. I wish he could show up and feel he could be treated fairly, but I don’t know if that will ever happen.”

Polanski has been fighting for years to end the case and lift an international arrest warrant that confined him to his native France, Switzerland and Poland, where he fled the Holocaust.

The warrant prevented him from collecting his Academy Award for best director for his 2002 film “The Pianist.” He was also nominated for 1974′s “Chinatown” and 1979′s “Tess.”

Geimer said she received a letter of apology from Polanski years ago after a documentary came out on the crime and the director’s life.

The Associated Press does not typically name victims of sex abuse, but Geimer went public years ago.
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T

Tagyhag

Member
She said she had suffered four decades of insults and mistreatment and has been hounded by the news media.
Click to expand...

Yeah fuck the media, bad enough that she was raped, but I bet she's tired of hearing "It's YOUR fault we don't see him at the Oscars!"
 
E

EdibleKnife

Member
Alright. Still going to consider Polanski a reprehensible shitbag as well as his supporters preceding this forgiveness from his victim and were willing to slander her
 
B

Bruce Springsteen

Member
Everyone is screaming for justice but they never think of the victim, I'm sure this person just wants to move the fuck on and isn't interested in being dragged through another media circus for the entertainment of the public
 
S

smurfx

get some go again
he broke other laws by running away from justice so they should still go after him. i understand she wants this behind her but he shouldn't be forgiven.
 
S

Skiptastic

Member
Bruce Springsteen said:
the Hollywood elite treat Polankski like a victim
Click to expand...

GoldenEye 007 said:
Probably the ones that openly applaud Polanski and act like he's a victim. Meaning a shitton of Hollywood people.
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I would hope there is a huge difference between applauding him at the Oscars (which I think is wrong) and actually insulting the victim. But you're probably right that the Hollywood people are screwed up enough to insult this poor woman.
 
A

Aarglefarg

Member
There should be severe consequences for people who harass victims.

Also justice is meant to be blind, not really based on what the victim wants.
 
Y

Yoshimitsu126

Member
I don't know what drives a man or woman enough to rape someone let alone a minor and I feel awful that this situation has gotten so terrible that the victim has learn to emphathize with her assailant. What a terrible situation overall. I hope she pulls through in her life and keep living it to her fullest.
 
R

Rumblebones

Banned
I'd like to have a list of the media outlets and public individuals that targeted this poor woman so they can get tarred and feathered for a change. Absolute filth.
 
C

CrocMother

Banned
Her life is another example of why victims of sexual assault (especially by a famous person) are afraid to come forward.

We have not figured this out yet.
 
R

rgoulart

Member
What he did was horrible and inexcusable and he should pay for that.

With that said, he's a very good director who has done several great movies. I would never let his personal life get in the way of my enjoyment of his movies.

I feel the same way as I do with Victor Salva (who is a monster btw), Mel Gibson and a lot of moviemakers out there that have done something terrible in their personal life.
 
N

NimbusD

Member
Yeah I definitely get that she wants this to end, or even doesn't let it affect her to the degree that people think it should. And how she's been treated is disgusting, but I couldn't get behind just letting him get away with taking those actions and saying that legally he's a ok for not only doing it but attempting to evade the law for so long.
 
Z

Zelenogorsk

Banned
They way the legal system and media has treated her is absolutely awful but I have to disagree with her. He hasn't served his sentence at all.
 
L

legend166

Member
If Polanski had not fled from justice in the first place and instead stayed, this would have ended decades ago for her. He's the primary reason this has dragged on for her.
 
A

Akuun

Looking for meaning in GAF
Skiptastic said:
What kind of fucking monster insults a child rape victim?
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Some people are unbelievable pieces of shit.

Parents who lost kids in the Sandy Hook shooting still get harassed by people accusing them of faking the whole thing, saying that their kids never existed in the first place and that their deaths were faked.
 
R

RS4-

Member
Still don't give a shit about his films, no matter how good they might be.

Garbage media, system, and people.
 
T

Takuan

Member
The man deserves to die in prison, but if this is the victim's wishes I think they should be respected.

Love his films, btw.
 
E

Emperor_Uriel

Member
Polanski is truly a beast, but some of these statements are extremely important for all of us to consider. Especially:

”The trauma of the ordeal that followed was so great that, you know, the brief encounter with him that evening that was unpleasant just faded and paled," Samantha Geimer said outside a courtroom in Los Angeles Superior Court. ”It just wasn't as traumatic for me as everybody would like to believe it was."
Click to expand...

As a mental health professional, I've always said that the reaction to any tragedy should be determined first and foremost by the victim him/herself. While a child rapist like Polanski should absolutely be behind bars, and what he did obviously has immense potential to cause trauma in his victim... it didn't here. We as a society need to stop positioning sexual abuse as a scarlet letter that brands the victim as permanently and viciously as the perpetrator.

Geimer doesn't want him dead, she doesn't feel that he damaged her mind or body irreparably... and that's actually the ideal outcome from a therapist's point of view. She is truly a remarkable woman, and trying to negate her reaction by shouting "you should have been more traumatized by this!" is madness. It doesn't matter if you're a fellow victim of abuse, the victim's parent, or simply a bystander with a strong opinion... you cannot and should not determine how the victim feels.
 
G

GoldenEye 007

Member
Emperor_Uriel said:
Polanski is truly a beast, but some of these statements are extremely important for all of us to consider. Especially:



As a mental health professional, I've always said that the reaction to any tragedy should be determined first and foremost by the victim him/herself. While a child rapist like Polanski should absolutely be behind bars, and what he did obviously has immense potential to cause trauma in his victim... it didn't here. We as a society need to stop positioning sexual abuse as a scarlet letter that brands the victim as permanently and viciously as the perpetrator.

Geimer doesn't want him dead, she doesn't feel that he damaged her mind or body irreparably... and that's actually the ideal outcome from a therapist's point of view. She is truly a remarkable woman, and trying to negate her reaction by shouting "you should have been more traumatized by this!" is madness. It doesn't matter if you're a fellow victim of abuse, the victim's parent, or simply a bystander with a strong opinion... you cannot and should not determine how the victim feels.
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That's great if she truly is recovered.

But there is a reason why criminal cases are always the government versus the accused individual. Not the victim.
 
M

Madness

Member
What sentence has he served? Living the life of a millionaire celebrity elite director/producer in Europe? Winning Oscars, being able to continue with his high quality of life not entering the US notwithstanding? The fact people clap and cheer a man who drugged and anally raped a little girl is pathetic. Yes she is a victim, and how she was treated was horrendous and victims rarely have any real say in how their perpetrators should be sentenced, but she doesn't get to decide what should or shouldn't be done to a child molester. He fled rather than face justice. He will go to his grave a US fugitive.
 
C

Coriolanus

Banned
GoldenEye 007 said:
That's great if she truly is recovered.

But there is a reason why criminal cases are always the government versus the accused individual. Not the victim.
Click to expand...

indeed, and the reason is the exact opposite of what is on display here: so that excessive punishment isn't doled out.

also not all criminal cases are gov vs indiv. Private prosecution of specific conducts may be allowed depending on state.
 
G

GoldenEye 007

Member
Coriolanus said:
indeed, and the reason is the exact opposite of what is on display here: so that excessive punishment isn't doled out.

also not all criminal cases are gov vs indiv. Private prosecution of specific conducts may be allowed depending on state.
Click to expand...

Hm, that is interesting. I did not know that.
 
M

Mxrz

Member
He is a criminal that fled. Considering how many people are shot or killed for less than that. No.

The woman should be left alone.
 
E

Emperor_Uriel

Member
GoldenEye 007 said:
That's great if she truly is recovered.

But there is a reason why criminal cases are always the government versus the accused individual. Not the victim.
Click to expand...

Nobody's arguing for leniency on Polanski, but the government dropped the ball on punishing him and ended up causing more harm than good through their dogged pursuit.

What he did was about as detestable as it gets, but he got away with it. This woman doesn't deserve to be punished for, or held back by, the failings of the criminal justice system of the time.
 
B

BigDes

Member
Someone who knows more about the legal system can answer this but

Wouldn't the government dropping this case essentially create a statute of limitations on child rape?

Which is something I don't think anyone wants.
 
K

KO Traveling Hobo

Member
legend166 said:
If Polanski had not fled from justice in the first place and instead stayed, this would have ended decades ago for her. He's the primary reason this has dragged on for her.
Click to expand...

The media circus and how society tends to ignore victims' feelings are both in dire need of change, but this is the truth of it. Polanski's cruelty did not end with the assault.
 
Fox Mulder

Fox Mulder

Member
He successfully dodged justice, is seen as a victim by many, and she's had to put up with shit for decades.

Gotta love it.
 
H

hodayathink

Member
To me, the justice system failed her when the original judge decided he was going to railroad Polanski instead of accepting the plea the prosecution agreed to.

Edit: Which isn't to say that the 6 weeks he originally served was fair, but I really don't agree with the idea that a judge can reject a plea after part of it has already been served.
 
K

Keri

Member
I think this case demonstrates and highlights the mistreatment that victims of sexual assault receive, after coming forward. It also highlights how a lengthy criminal proceeding can further victimize a sexual assault survivor, so in that sense I think it's good for her to discuss these things.

But, I hate that her position and personal experience will almost certainly be used by some as a justification for downplaying sexual assault, in general. I hope that when people think of her story, they think about how devastating and traumatic coming forward as a victim can be, rather than viewing it from the position of: "See, sexual assault isn't so bad. If we all just ignored it, they'd get over it."
 
L

L Thammy

Member
The legal system's focus on the criminal does often force victims to continually relive the experience and such, but I'm not sure I'd say that the fact it took so long is as much the fault of the legal system here as it's the fault of the guy who ran away because he he was a child rapist.
 
IrishNinja

IrishNinja

Member
Fox Mulder said:
He successfully dodged justice, is seen as a victim by many, and she's had to put up with shit for decades.

Gotta love it.
Click to expand...

this is the heartbreaking bit here - can't fault her for feeling this way, just the same way i can't forget the disdain i have for all those who clapped for him
 
R

Ratrat

Member
Its called 'second rape' I think. The press put her and her mother through hell for decades and continue to.
 
M

Matt

Member
hodayathink said:
To me, the justice system failed her when the original judge decided he was going to railroad Polanski instead of accepting the plea the prosecution agreed to.

Edit: Which isn't to say that the 6 weeks he originally served was fair, but I really don't agree with the idea that a judge can reject a plea after part of it has already been served.
Click to expand...
He was sent for a 90 day psychiatric evaluation. The further elements of his plea deal were always dependent on further consideration after that period. There was no railroading, the man drugged and raped a child.
 
H

Hickbilly Deluxe

Banned
He owes her nothing according to her, but he owes the American justice system much.

I hope he never gets to set foot in the US again and dies a fugitive.
 
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