AceShowbiz - Roman Polanski's lawyer has ordered Swiss authorities to ignore the "roar and unbearable pressure of an ill-informed public" and release the embattled director from house arrest in the country. The Rosemary's Baby moviemaker has been confined to his Swiss estate since December 2009 following his September arrest in Zurich stemming from a three-decade old sex crime in America.

The Los Angeles District Attorney's Office wants Polanski to return to California to be sentenced for having unlawful sex with a 13-year-old girl at a party in 1977. L.A. officials moved one step closer on Thursday, April 22 when they ruled the Oscar winner cannot be sentenced in absentia, but the star's lawyer Herve Temime is now insisting Swiss officials release Polanski from house arrest immediately.

He tells the AFP, "It is up to the Swiss authorities to tell the truth and give back Roman Polanski his freedom once and for all, regardless of the roar and unbearable pressure of an ill-informed public." In February this year, Swiss authorities stated they would not make a decision on the extradition of Polanski to the U.S. until all avenues of appeal are exhausted.