On Monday, Russian attorneys for WNBA star Brittney Griner filed an appeal of her nine-year sentence for possession of illegal drugs in Moscow, according to a Russian news agency.
Griner, who claimed to have been prescribed medical cannabis in the United States to relieve pain from chronic sports injuries, said she had made an honest mistake by packing the cannabis-infused vaping cartridges in her luggage as she rushed to make her flight back to America. She pleaded guilty to the charges against her but insisted she did not purposely break Russia’s drug laws.
US Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) basketball player Brittney Griner (C), who was detained at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport and later charged with illegal possession of cannabis, is escorted before a court hearing in Khimki outside Moscow, on August 4, 2022. (EVGENIA NOVOZHENINA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
The basketball player was convicted of possession and trafficking of drugs on August 4 and sentenced to nine and a half years in prison. But immediately after the sentencing, Russian authorities hinted that they would accept a prisoner exchange with the United States to release the Olympic gold medal winner.
The Biden administration has reportedly offered convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, who had been sentenced to 25 years in U.S. prison. In exchange for Griner and corporate security executive Paul Whelan, who had been imprisoned in Russia for alleged espionage that he denies.
Monday was the deadline for Griner’s legal team to file an appeal. Attorney Maria Blagovolina told the media they had indeed filed the request on time, Reuters reported.
“We demand to overturn the verdict passed by the Khimki court and impose a new sentence,” added Alexander Boikov, a lawyer at Moscow Legal Center who represented Griner in court.
US’ Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) basketball player Brittney Griner, who was detained at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport and later charged with illegal possession of cannabis, holds a picture of her team as she stands inside a defendants’ cage before a court hearing in Khimki outside Moscow, on August 4, 2022. (EVGENIA NOVOZHENINA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Boikov added that prosecutors and police violated Griner’s rights under Russian law by not properly translating into English the charges and papers she was required to sign during her arrest and conviction.
The Biden administration has maintained that the arrest and conviction are “unacceptable,” and has claimed to have made it a “high priority” to have her released.
But Griner’s supporters say that Biden has done very little to help Griner avoid the Russian prison sentence.
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