Lawsuit against director Roman Polanski for allegedly raping a minor in 1973

Los Angeles:

French-Polish director Roman Polanski, who fled the United States more than four decades ago after being found guilty of sexually assaulting a child, will face civil charges in the alleged rape of another minor, the woman’s lawyer said Tuesday. Will have to face trial.

The case against “The Pianist” director will be heard in Los Angeles in August 2025, said Hollywood lawyer Gloria Allred, who has represented victims of rapist Harvey Weinstein and others who have emerged in the #MeToo era.

While Polanski cannot be forced to attend the trial, Allred said, the civil hearing will be a chance for her client, named Jane Doe in the lawsuit, to seek justice for the alleged assault in 1973.

The lawsuit, filed last year, claims Polanski took the then-teenager to dinner at a Los Angeles restaurant in 1973.

He allegedly gave her tequila, and when she started feeling dizzy, he took her to his home in Tony Benedict Canyon, where he forced himself on her.

“He told her: ‘Please don’t do this,'” Allred told reporters.

“She alleges that he ignored her pleas. She also alleges that Defendant Polanski removed Plaintiff’s clothing and began to sexually assault her, causing her tremendous physical, emotional pain and suffering.”

The woman, whose age was not released, first came forward with allegations against Polanski in 2017, at which time she was identified as “Robyn.”

The civil lawsuit, which seeks unspecified damages, was filed in June 2023, just before the expiration of a California law that allowed an extended window for claims against alleged perpetrators of sex crimes.

Oscar winner Polanski, now 90, is a divisive figure, with some in the film world praising his creative genius while others insisting he was always a sexual predator.

In the late 1970s, Polanski fled the United States while awaiting sentencing for the attack on 13-year-old Samantha Geimer, whom he drugged and raped.

Geimer later defended Polanski and was photographed with him last year.

Polanski, who also directed “Rosemary’s Baby” and “Chinatown,” is currently facing a defamation suit in France by British actress Charlotte Lewis, who claims he sexually assaulted her in 1983 when she was 16. He had assaulted him.

The director has always denied any wrongdoing.

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