A Russian court upheld the prison sentence of WNBA star Brittney Griner, rejecting her appeal of the Aug. 4 verdict.
Griner was informed she will receive credit for time served in pre-trial detention, which would reduce the nine-year sentence to eight years. For each day in pre-trial detention, Griner has been given 1.5 days served.
Convicted for possession of marijuana cartridges at the Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow, Griner missed the entire WNBA season with the Phoenix Mercury. The eight-time All-Star was in Russia playing professionally during the WNBA offseason and was arrested before her planned return flight to the United States.
Griner’s attorney equated the penal colony where she was ordered to serve her time to a “concentration camp” because of forced labor and commonly reported abuse.
President Joe Biden said last month the United States continues to seek ways to bring Griner home. She was arrested in February, weeks before the Russian invasion of Ukraine began.
Tension between the U.S. and Russia led to the two sides breaking off diplomatic talks surrounding an exchange of notable Russian and American prisoners presently incarcerated on foreign soil.
Ivan Nechayev, a spokesman for the Russian foreign ministry, said in August his country would accept only “quiet diplomacy” and chided Biden for discussing any details of talks with the Kremlin.
Secretary of State Anthony Blinken directly discussed an exchange involving Russian arms trafficker Viktor Bout for Griner and former Marine Paul Whelan, who holds American, British, Canadian and Irish passports. He was sentenced in 2020 to 16 years in jail after being convicted of spying. He denied the charge.
Griner said she was prescribed medical cannabis in the United States to relieve pain from chronic injuries. She said the vape cartridges found in her luggage was nothing more than an “honest mistake” in asking the court for leniency.
–Field Level Media
