BERN, Switzerland, Nov. 27 (UPI) -- Swiss officials said they will not fight a judge's ruling allowing Roman Polanski to post $4.5 million bail while fighting extradition to the United States.
The Swiss Federal Office of Justice said it will not challenge the Wednesday ruling stipulating the Oscar-winning director of "The Pianist" can be transferred to house arrest if he posts $4.5 million bail and submits to electronic monitoring, CNN reported Thursday.
Polanski, 76, was arrested in September on a U.S. warrant stemming from a 1977 sex case. The director pleaded guilty in August of that year to having unlawful sex with a 13-year-old girl, but fled the country before he was sentenced.
"It is very rare to get bail in an extradition case and especially in cases where the person's fled," Laurie Levenson, a Loyola University law professor and former federal prosecutor, told the Los Angeles Times. "This is a little like giving bail to O.J. after the Bronco chase."
Levenson said granting bail is likely to slow the extradition process.
