The Los Angeles Police Department is currently investigating allegations brought forward by a woman who claims to have been harassed by renowned filmmaker Roman Polanski in 1975 when she was just 10 years old.
As reported by local media and confirmed by the specialized publication 'The Hollywood Reporter,' these allegations against the director have exceeded the statute of limitations for pressing charges, but they may shed light on other cases involving the 84-year-old Polanski.
The most recent accusation comes from Marianne Barnard, who alleges that she was subjected to harassment by Polanski during a photo session in which the filmmaker photographed her in the N-. The director's legal team contends that the investigation "will prove that this entire story lacks any foundation."
Back in August, another woman, identified as Robin M., came forward publicly in Los Angeles, accusing Polanski of abusing her in 1973 when she was a 16-year-old teenager. She became the third woman to report abuse by the director, following Charlotte Lewis in 2010 and Samantha Geimer in 1977. In the 1977 case, Polanski pleaded guilty but subsequently fled to Europe to avoid imprisonment.
Polanski, originally from Poland and married to actress Emmanuelle Seigner, attempted to return to the United States earlier this year in an effort to resolve the case without serving prison time, but his proposal was rejected by a Los Angeles judge.
Charges against him have constrained his ability to move freely around the world, driven by concerns that the United States might seek his extradition.
In 1977, Polanski, who was 43 at the time, drugged and coerced 13-year-old Samantha Geimer into activity following a photo shoot, leading to his arrest. While he spent 42 days in jail after pleading guilty, Polanski, released on bail, fled the United States at the end of 1978, fearing a much harsher sentence than initially agreed upon with the authorities.
Polanski cited his escape as a response to the belief that Judge Laurence Rittenband was planning to impose a sentence that was far more severe than the one they had agreed upon.
