In this May 6, 2008 file photo, Samantha Geimer arrives at the premiere of the HBO Documentary "Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired" in New York. A lawyer for Polanski says Geimer, a sex crime victim, will appeal to a judge to end the case against him. Geimer will appear Friday, June 9, 2017 in Los Angeles Superior Court to help make the case that Polanski has served his time for the 40-year-old crime. (AP Photo/Peter Kramer, File)
By Brian Melley
LOS ANGELES (AP) --
A lawyer for Roman Polanski says his sex crime victim will directly appeal to a judge to end the case against him.
Attorney Harland Braun said Samantha Geimer will appear Friday in Los Angeles Superior Court to help make the case that Polanski has served his time for the 40-year-old crime.
The Oscar-winner has been a fugitive since he fled to France in 1978 after pleading guilty to having unlawful sex with a minor.
Polanski feared the judge was going to renege on the plea agreement and send him away for more time than the six weeks he served in prison prior to sentencing.
Geimer, who was 13 at the time, has long supported Polanski's bid to end the case, but has never appeared on his behalf in court.
Cynthia Erivo attends the National Board of Review Awards gala at Cipriani 42nd Street on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
Cynthia Erivo, who is starring in the hit musical "Wicked," was named Tuesday as the 2025 Woman of the Year by Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Theatricals.
The theater group, which dates to 1844 and claims to be the world's third-oldest still operating, said Erivo will receive her Pudding Pot award at a celebratory roast Feb. 5. Afterward, she will attend a performance of Hasty Pudding Theatricals' 176th production, "101 Damnations." Actor Jon Hamm, who came to fame starring as ad executive Don Draper on the AMC series "Mad Men," is the 2025 Man of the Year. He will receive his Pudding Pot Jan. 31.
"We are holding space for Cynthia Erivo's arrival," Man and Woman of the Year Events Coordinator Hannah Frazer said in a statement. "We're sweeping out our broomstick closets and prepping some wicked smart humor as we eagerly await her in February. Before she flies off with her Pudding Pot, she'll have to work a little magic to earn it."
Along with starirng in the smash hit musical, the British entertainer is a two-time Oscar nominee and an Emmy Award, Tony Award and Grammy Award winner.
Erivo burst onto the scene with her brilliant performance in the Broadway revival of "The Color Purple." winning her the 2016 Tony for best actress in a musical. She performed songs from the play on the "Today" show, earning the Daytime Emmy for outstanding music performance in a daytime program. And the show's soundtrack won best musical theater album at the 2017 Grammys.
Last year, Erivo starred in and produced "Drift," which follows a young Liberian refugee who has escaped her war-torn country to a Greek island. In 2021, Erivo was nominated for an Emmy for her portrayal of Aretha Franklin in the National Geographic series "Genius:... Read More
