Polanski won’t be extradited
Associated Press
WARSAW, Poland
Poland will not extradite Oscar-winning filmmaker Roman Polanski to the U.S. in an almost-40-year-old case after prosecutors declined to challenge a court ruling against the extradition request.
Prosecutors in Krakow, who had sought the extradition on behalf of the U.S., said Friday they found the court’s refusal of extradition to be “right” and said they found no grounds to appeal.
A lawyer for Polanski, Jan Olszewski, told The Associated Press that Polanski’s reaction was of “great relief” and “satisfaction” that the irregularities in the U.S. procedure have been exposed. Polanski spoke to his lawyer over the phone from Paris, where he lives.
The case was heard in Krakow, where Polanski has a residence in Poland.
The decision by the prosecutors closes the case in Poland and means Polanski, 82, is free to reside and work in Poland, where he grew up and studied filmmaking, and where he is preparing to make a new movie.