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Polanski lawyers allege further misconduct by original judge

Mar 19, 2010, 19:20 GMT

Los Angeles - Lawyers for Roman Polanski have filed a new petition for the director's freedom, alleging further misconduct by high ranking prosecutors and the judge in the his 33-year-old sex crimes case. The 68-page petition cited sealed testimony by a deputy district attorney, Roger Gunson, who helped prosecute Polanski in 1977. He is alleged to have sought to disqualify the now-deceased judge in the case after discovering that he had held illegal discussions with other prosecutors in the case, according to the Los Angeles Times Friday. Gunson however was denied permission by his bosses to pursue the disqualification. Polanski, 76, is currently under house arrest in Switzerland awaiting the outcome of an extradition process. He fled from the US after pleading guilty to unlawful sex with a minor, when he learned that the judge, Laurence J Rittenband, intended to deviate from a plea deal that would have seen him sentenced to just the 42 days he had already served in jail for psychiatric evaluation. In the new testimony presented by Polanski's lawyers, Gunson confirmed that Rittenband reneged on the sentencing deal. Polanski's lawyers appealed earlier this year for a judge to sentence the director in absentia, but were rebuffed, despite presenting evidence of the irregularities in the original case.

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Polanski lawyers allege further misconduct by original judge

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