Swiss Deny Bail For Roman Polanski

Filmmaker Roman Polanski will have to cool his heels in a Swiss jail for a little while longer, because his request that he be released from prison was denied. Folco Galli, a spokesman for the Federal Office of Justice in Bern, said, "We are still persuaded that there is still a danger that he will escape, and that liberation on bail could not guarantee his presence through the extradition proceedings."

According to the LA Times, Galli also said that "his office rejected Polanski's request for a reconsideration of the warrant leading to his arrest." Polanski has been held by the Swiss since September 26, by way of a U.S. arrest warrant related his 1977 rape of a 13-year-old girl. Since then, the international film community has rallied to Polanski's defense while the French government has chastised the U.S. then admitted the rape of a minor is a serious incident.