Well, there is something demotic in your tone, here. It is not laughable at all to point out that the authorities spoke with forked tongues. You seem to take some pleasure in knocking down the cultural icon which might be interfering with your sense of fair play.
Doug writes 'what makes all this politically interesting is the way the cultural elite.. has united to defend its own'. Yes, there might indeed be some exaggerated sense of entitlement there, but it does not follow that Polanski should be clobbered to get the cultural elite.
And also 'So it's ok to dodge a prison sentence - not one for political crimes, but for what looks to be a very nasty common crime - for 35 years by hiding out in Paris and Gstaad?' but that's not quite what happened: Polanksi made serious attempts to negotiate with the US authorities, but those were frustrated by the Judge's own showbusiness ambitions.
It might be a surprise to you, but Europeans have a low opinion of US justice - in particular, and I know that the difference is one of degree rather than kind - US laws on sex offenders seem to be a bit deranged. see, for example, Louis Theroux's documentary on Coalinga State Hospital (news report: http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/the-weekends-television-louis-theroux-ndash-a-place-for-paedophiles-sun-bbc2-1671224.html). I don't think I would support extradition of any convicted paedophile to California if this report of the law there is accurate.