Polanski’s request to restore film academy membership denied

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A judge has denied Roman Polanski’s request to restore his membership in the organization that bestows the Academy Awards two years after he was expelled from it for raping a minor. Polanski had asked the court to compel the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to make him a member in good standing again. The judge ruled the academy had a right to expel Polanski. The Oscar winner remains a fugitive after pleading guilty to unlawful sex with a minor in 1977 and fleeing the U.S. the following year. Polanski’s lawyer says the 87-year-old director has no plans to appeal.