Be fair to Polanski, sex victim tells Oscar judges

The woman sexually assaulted as a teenager by the director Roman Polanski has said the Oscar judges should view his shortlisted film on its merits and not consider his crime.

Samantha Geimer said, in the Los Angeles Times and on a television talk show, that she wished the matter could be put behind her. "I don't really have any hard feelings toward him, or any sympathy either," she wrote. "But I believe Mr Polanski and his film should be honoured according to the quality of the work. What he does for a living and how good he is at it has nothing to do with me or what he did to me."

Ms Geimer, who was 13 in 1977 when Polanski, now 69, assaulted her, added: "I got over the trauma of that experience a long time ago. I wasn't prepared to carry bad feelings with me and further damage my life."

Polanski's film The Pianist has been nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, for its depiction of the Holocaust through the eyes of a Polish pianist who escaped deportation and then hid from the Nazis.

The director has lived as a fugitive since fleeing while on bail, having pleaded guilty to unlawful sex with a minor. He is now a French citizen.

The Los Angeles district attorney's office said: "Polanski could face from one to 50 years in prison if he returns to the US. The case remains a matter between the court and M. Polanski. Until he surrenders, he remains a fugitive."