With everything taking place - healthcare, the economy, the complete meltdown of civil discourse in this nation – why, one wonders, should any of us care about Roman Polanski? Normally, I wouldn't care about celebrity news, and I certainly never thought something like this would be the subject of my first diary. Rape, however, is a subject that hits close to home for me. After listening to all of the stomach-turning coverage of the Polanski case, I feel compelled to counter two of the claims made by Polanski's supporters.
Claim #1: Polanski was misled by the judge, and as a result, forced to flee the country before sentencing.
Claim #2: He didn't really rape the victim. It was consensual. Or as Polanski once said, "She was not unresponsive".
The testimony before the Grand Jury and during the plea proceedings proves both claims to be false.
Let's address the first claim. According to Polanski's version of events, he was grossly misled. Polanski claims the judge promised to honor the plea deal, and that when Polanski learned the plea deal might not be honored, he was absolutely shocked, and had no choice but to flee abroad. His own testimony refutes this. I never thought I would thank Marcia Clark for anything, but she dug up the transcript of Polanski's guilty plea made August 8, 1977. Here are the relevant bits courtesy of The Daily Beast:
Gunson:What is the maximum sentence for unlawful sexual intercourse?
Polanski: It’s one to fifteen—twenty years in State Prison.
Gunson: Do you understand it is also possible that you could be placed on probation, with or without being required to serve up to one year in the County Jail?
Polanski: Yes.
...
Gunson: Mr. Polanski, who do you believe will decide what your sentence will be in this matter?
Polanski: The Judge.
Gunson: Who do you think will decide whether or not you will get probation?
Polanski: The Judge.
Later both the prosecutor and Judge Rittenband explained to Polanski, before he pled guilty, that the judge was not bound to honor his plea deal, and could choose to give him a harsher sentence.
Gunson: Do you understand that at this time, the Court has not made any decision as to what sentence you will receive? Do you understand that the Judge has not made any decision?
Polanski: Yes.
...
Gunson: The District Attorney will make a motion to dismiss the remaining pending charges after sentencing. Other than that promise, has anyone made any promises to you, such as a lesser sentence or probation, or any reward? Immunity? A court recommendation to the Immigration and Naturalization Service, or anything else, in order to get you to plead guilty?
Polanski: No.
...
Judge Rittenband: I must advise the defendant, under section 1192.5 of the Penal code, that the approval of the Court to the plea is not binding on the Court; that the Court may, at the time set for hearing on the application for probation or pronouncement of judgment, withdraw its approval, in light of further consideration of the matter; and three, in such case, the defendant shall be permitted to withdraw his plea, if he desires to do so. Now, Mr. Polanski—and the Court will also make a finding at this time that the plea was freely and voluntarily made, and that there is a factual basis for it. You may now proceed to take the plea.
Gunson: Mr. Polanski, to Count III of indictment number A-334139, which charges you with the commission of Unlawful Sexual Intercourse on March 10th, 1977, a felony, how do you plead?
Polanski: Guilty.
As Marcia Clark asserts: "Few defendants were ever more thoroughly warned of the sentence they faced and the power of the judge to impose it as Roman Polanski." He chose to plead guilty anyway, and then fled before sentencing. One problem, criminals don't have the legal right to flee abroad because heresay indicates they might receive what they consider an unfair sentence. Had Polanski remained and faced sentencing 32 years ago this wouldn't be happening. Assuming there was misconduct, Polanski could have withdrawn his plea or sought an appeal. Even after fleeing, he had the opportunity to return in May 2009, and face a new judge who indicated he was willing to make a deal. He refused. Had he returned, his victim wouldn't be enduring a media circus that she considers worse than rape, and Polanski wouldn't be facing possible jail time at the age of 76. Roman Polanski's own hubris is to blame for this entire fiasco.
On to Claim #2: Polanski didn’t commit “rape-rape.” (WARNING: If rape details are triggers for you, you should skip the next part.) I apologize to anyone who is upset by the details of the case. However, they are part of the public record, they have been widely discussed elsewhere, and the best way to demonstrate what actually occurred is to quote the original testimony. Consent is a moot point, because contrary to what Mr. Polanski may believe, 13 year-olds don't possess the legal right to consent to sex with a 43 year-old. Even if the victim had been older, it would still be rape, because she was intoxicated. Had Polanski's supporters bothered to read the transcript of the victim's testimony at The Smoking Gun, they would know that the victim repeatedly told Polanski to stop. As for her supposedly pushy mother and her past experience, which his supporters keep hinting at - none of that matters. She was a child and Polanski was an adult. If her mother failed to protect her, that only makes this story more tragic, it doesn't make Polanski a victim.
Polanski first photographed Ms. Gailey on Feb 20. He insisted she pose topless. Gailey believed that Polanski intended to crop the photos, and that he only wanted images of her bare shoulders. Gailey didn't tell her mother about the topless photos, and she was unaware that anything inappropriate had transpired. Polanski visited Gailey again on March 10. He arrived "in a rush," saying he wanted to take more photos of her for French Vogue. Gailey wanted to ask if a friend could accompany her, "but I didn't because he was rushing me." First Polanski took her to an unnamed friend's house. He photographed her there for an hour. Then he took her to Jack Nicholson's home. They arrived and briefly spoke to "a woman with black hair." Gailey told Polanski she was thirsty. Polanski went into the kitchen and returned with champagne.
Gailey: And he said, "Should I open it?" And I went, "I don't care," you know. And so he asked the woman if it was all right and she said it was.
After Gailey finished that first glass, he gave her more champagne, and he began photographing her. The "lady with the black hair" left. Gailey was alone with Polanski. He requested that Gailey remove her shirt, leaving her nude from the waist up. She did. After taking some photos, Gailey changed into a blue dress, and Polanski told her to call her mother. Her mother asked if she was okay. Did she need a ride home? Gailey said she didn’t need a ride. Polanski took the phone and told her mother they’d “be home kind of late because it had already gotten dark outside." He hung up. They went into the bathroom. Polanski showed her a pill broken into three parts.
Gailey: And he said, "Is this a Quaalude?" And I went, "Yes." And he says, "Oh, do you think I will be able to drive if I take it?" And I went "I don't know," you know. He says, "Well, should I take it?" I went "I don't know." He goes, "Well, I guess I will," and he took it. And he says, "Do you want part?"
According to her testimony, she took the pill because she was "already pretty drunk," and wasn't thinking clearly. Polanski took her to the Jacuzzi and had her get in. Gailey wanted to keep her underwear on, but Polanski said "take them off." He proceeded to take a few pictures of her nude in the Jacuzzi. Then he told Gailey there wasn't enough light and stopped. Polanski left, went to the bathroom, undressed, and returned nude. Polanski got into to the Jacuzzi with Gailey. She moved away from him to the other end of the Jacuzzi. He told her to move nearer to him. She refused, "I got to get out." Polanski again insisted she move nearer to him. Wanting to get away from Polanski, she made up a story about having asthma, telling him it was aggravated by the heat.
Gailey: And he said, "Just come down here a second." So I finally went down. And then he went - there was a lot of the Jacuzzi jets. He goes, "Doesn't it feel better down here?" And he was like holding me up because it is almost over my head. And I went, "Yeah, but I better get out." So I got out.
...
Gailey: He had his hands on my sides like right around here and he was -
Gunson: Around your waist?
Gailey: Yes. Then he started to move them around and I just got out.
She wrapped a towel around herself. Polanski left the Jacuzzi and got into the pool. He told her to get in the pool. Gailey told him repeatedly she didn’t want to, but he insisted, "No, just get in." Gailey dove in, swam the length of the pool, and jumped out. She then went to the bathroom. Polanski followed her. He asked if she was okay. She told him she wanted to go home; she needed medicine for her asthma. Polanski responded "Yeah, I'll take you home soon." She told him "No, I have to go home now." Polanski ignored her request, telling her to “go into the other room and lie down.” She testified that she was afraid, and told him "No, I think I better go home." She sat on the couch. Polanski sat next to her and asked her if she was okay. She told him she wasn't. Polanski responded, "Well, you'll be better." He reached over and kissed her. She said "No, keep away...But I was kind of afraid of him because there was no one else there." She continued to tell him no, pleading to go home. “I’ll take you home soon,” Polanski assured her, and then he proceeded to perform oral sex on her against her will.
Gailey: I was ready to cry. I was kind of - I was going, "No. Come on. Stop it." But I was afraid.
Polanski didn't respond. He continued assaulting her. She told the prosecutor "I was kind of dizzy...having trouble with my coordination, like walking and stuff." She had put her panties back on when they were in the bathroom. Polanski now pulled them off and raped her vaginally. She continued saying "No, stop." Polanski ignored her and she "didn't struggle much...because I, you know, there was no one else there and I had no place to go." Suddenly, Polanski panicked. "Are you on the pill?" he asked. When she told him she wasn't, he asked when she last had her period. She told him she wasn't sure. Polanski was incredulous, “Come on, you have to remember.” She said she didn't, and Polanski asked if she would prefer him going "in through your back," instead. She told him no. Polanski sodomized her anyway. At one point, the dark-haired woman knocked on the door. To keep her out of the room, Polanski told the woman that he was "getting dressed.” He left Gailey, walked to the door, opened it a crack and spoke to the woman.
Gailey: I was still pretty much afraid of him. I didn't - even though there was someone else there. I didn't know what to say. I had gotten up. I thought I could just leave and then go home and say something, you know, because he was the only way I had to get home.
Gailey got up, got dressed, and started walking towards the door, but Polanski wouldn't let her leave. "He sat me back down," she said, and then Polanski sodomized her a second time. After he finished, Polanski drove her home, as Gailey sat crying in his car.
Gailey: I wasn't saying anything. He says, "Don't tell your mother about this and don't tell your boyfriend, either." He said something like, "This is our secret." And I went, "Yeah." And then later he said, "You know, when I first met you I promised myself I wouldn't do anything like this with you."
When Gailey got home she told her mother, and then, she told the police. She has never wavered from this account. Polanski wasn't as brave. He claimed the sex was consensual and that she "regrettably was not unschooled in sexual matters." During testimony Polanski also said that “she was not unresponsive.” Besides, we all know that the real problem here isn’t child rape, but American prudishness and envy. As Polanski explained in a 1979 interview with Martin Amis for Tatler:
Polanski: When I was being driven to the police station from the hotel, the car radio was already talking about it ... I couldn't believe ... I thought, you know, I was going to wake up from it. I realize, if I have killed somebody, it wouldn't have had so much appeal for the press, you see? But fucking, you see, and the young girls. Judges want to fuck young girls. Juries want to fuck young girls – everyone wants to fuck young girls!
I firmly believe in justice, but I admit, I have no idea what the just solution to this case would be. As the daughter of a rape survivor, I sympathize with Polanski's victim and her desire for closure. I think Polanski deserves to go to jail, but I would certainly understand if Polanski was ultimately sentenced to time served at her urging. Having said that, I'm disgusted by the growing list of people attempting to portray Polanski as a martyr to the incompetence and inequities of the American justice system. Our justice system is admittedly a mess, but Polanski isn't one of its victims.
Some of his supporters want to whitewash Polanski's crime while reminding us of his own suffering. I am truly sorry for what Mr. Polanski has suffered during his life, but his past suffering doesn’t absolve his guilt. Many people have lost relatives to murder and even genocide, my own family among them, and the majority don't go on to become child rapists. If anything, because of the suffering Polanski has endured, he should have understood what pain his actions would cause his victim. Roman Polanski is a brilliant director. He is, apparently, a "charming" friend and companion. Roman Polanski is also a child rapist. The after affects of rape are devastating. My mother, like Polanski's victim, has moved on. She has learned to be happy, again, to live with what happened, but deep down the pain is still there. It always will be. Polanski didn’t commit a “youthful error,” as French philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy suggests. Polanski committed a violent crime against a child, and whatever becomes of him, that shouldn’t be glossed-over. No matter how many decades have passed.