"[Jodie] Foster and [Mel] Gibson have a long history. ... It's somewhat laudable to stand by a friend with a tarnished reputation. But when the friend in question is someone accused of spousal abuse, threats and the most vicious and appalling of sexual and racial slurs, maybe she'd want to distance herself a little," writes Mary Elizabeth Williams at Salon.
"A similar reaction seems to loom whenever a creator or actor does something really beyond the pale, like Roman Polanski."
Roman Polanski has made his first public appearance since being released this week from house arrest, attending the Montreux Jazz Festival on Saturday to watch his wife perform on stage.
The film director Roman Polanski, free after nine months of detention, arrived Saturday at the Montreux Jazz Festival in his first public appearance since being released this week from house arrest.
American authorities are disputing who was a fault for apparent miscommunication over sealed transcripts requested by Switzerland in the Roman Polanski case _ an issue the Swiss say played a key role in the decision to refuse his extradition.
Federal officials denied Thursday keeping Los Angeles prosecutors in the dark about refusing a Swiss request for sealed transcripts in the Roman Polanski case, a move that was pivotal to the Swiss refusal to extradite the filmmaker to the United States.
The Roman Polanski case took another strange turn Thursday, with American prosecutors disputing who was responsible for an apparent miscommunication about sealed transcripts requested by Swiss authorities.
Roman Polanski's lawyers have issued a statement calling for an investigation into the U.S. refusal to provide requested evidence to Swiss authorities in his 33-year-old sex case.
The "Swiss bank account" has long been known as a repository in which individuals could hide assets they did not wish to become known to authorities. Now it is obvious that those who engage in statutory rape in the United States may flee to Switzerland secure in the knowledge that their crime will not be taken seriously.
