Roman Polanski Faces 2-Year Prison Term as US Requests Extradition

No rush, folks: Nearly a month after arranging for the arrest of Roman Polanski in Zurich, Switzerland, the U.S. Justice Department has formally requested the director's extradition back to the States. With its request arrived specific details of the charges still facing Polanski, who fled Los Angeles 31 years ago rather than spend another 48 days behind bars for a child-sex rap. Adjusted for inflation (or something), that apparently amounts to two years in 2009 numbers.

According to a radio interview with a Swiss Justice Ministry spokesman, the extradition papers state that California's current maximum penalty for unlawful sex with a minor -- to which Polanski pleaded guilty in 1978 -- is two years. It could easily take that long for Polanski's appeals process, which must escalate through the Swiss criminal court system before culminating in a Federal Supreme Court showdown. The director, 76, would presumably be detained for the duration of that process.

And, as mentioned Thursday, his lawyers rejected the possibility of Polanski submitting to extradition before those appeals are exhausted. I'm pretty sure this means he'll be missing the Berlin Film Festival next year.

· US files Polanski extradition request in sex case [AP]