A Russian judge on Thursday handed down a harsh nine-year prison sentence for WNBA star Brittney Griner, rejecting the player’s plea for leniency and her apology for “an honest mistake” in bringing less than a gram of cannabis oil into the country in February.
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The sentence — close to the maximum possible — is likely to fuel anger among the athlete’s supporters and fans in the United States, who see her as a political pawn being held hostage by Russia. It will add to pressure on the Biden administration to reach a deal with Moscow on a prisoner exchange to bring her home.
Her fate is now in the hands of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who will make the final decision on any prisoner swap. She also was fined 1 million rubles ($16,590).
Griner pleaded guilty last month to carrying vape cartridges with cannabis oil into the country. The prosecution contended that the 0.702 grams of cannabis found in her luggage after she landed at Sheremetyevo International Airport was a “significant amount.”
Speaking through a court interpreter before the sentencing, Griner said she never intended to break Russian law or harm anyone in Russia.
She’d made “an honest mistake under stress,” she said, rushing to pack her bags and return to her Russian team, unaware that the vape cartridges were in her baggage before flying to Moscow in mid-February.
“I grew up in a normal household in Houston, Texas, with my siblings and my mom and my dad. My mom stayed at home to care of me and my sister, and my father went to work and provided for our family,” she told the judge. “My parents taught me two things: One is to take ownership for your responsibilities, and two, to work hard for everything that you have.”
Griner, who plays for UMMC Ekaterinburg during the WNBA offseason, called Yekaterinburg her “second home.” She said she was moved by the comradeship she found with her teammates there and by the enthusiasm of her fans, especially the young girls who would wait outside the team’s change rooms to greet her. “That’s why I kept coming back.”
The athlete apologized to her teams in Russia and the United States, to her parents and her spouse. She said she was aware of people talking about her as “a political pawn” but distanced herself from such language and said she hoped it would play no role in the court’s decision.
“I never meant to hurt anybody, to put in jeopardy the Russian population or violate any Russian laws,” she noted.
A short time later, as the judge read through her sentencing, Griner sat in the metal defendant’s cage in the courtroom and listened to the outcome through an interpreter. She did not speak to journalists after the hearing ended. Her lawyers promised an appeal and called the verdict “absolutely unreasonable,” saying the court “completely ignored all the evidence of the defense, and most importantly, the guilty plea.”
The White House reacted quickly. “Today, American citizen Brittney Griner received a prison sentence that is one more reminder of what the world already knew: Russia is wrongfully detaining Brittney,” President Biden said in a statement. “It’s unacceptable, and I call on Russia to release her immediately so she can be with her wife, loved ones, friends, and teammates.”
Biden pledged that his administration would “continue to work tirelessly and pursue every possible avenue” to return Griner and former security consultant Paul Whelan to the United States. Whelan is serving a 16-year sentence of hard labor after being convicted of spying in 2020. He says he was framed.
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The sentence — close to the maximum possible — is likely to fuel anger among the athlete’s supporters and fans in the United States, who see her as a political pawn being held hostage by Russia. It will add to pressure on the Biden administration to reach a deal with Moscow on a prisoner exchange to bring her home.
Her fate is now in the hands of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who will make the final decision on any prisoner swap. She also was fined 1 million rubles ($16,590).
Griner pleaded guilty last month to carrying vape cartridges with cannabis oil into the country. The prosecution contended that the 0.702 grams of cannabis found in her luggage after she landed at Sheremetyevo International Airport was a “significant amount.”
Speaking through a court interpreter before the sentencing, Griner said she never intended to break Russian law or harm anyone in Russia.
She’d made “an honest mistake under stress,” she said, rushing to pack her bags and return to her Russian team, unaware that the vape cartridges were in her baggage before flying to Moscow in mid-February.
“I grew up in a normal household in Houston, Texas, with my siblings and my mom and my dad. My mom stayed at home to care of me and my sister, and my father went to work and provided for our family,” she told the judge. “My parents taught me two things: One is to take ownership for your responsibilities, and two, to work hard for everything that you have.”
Griner, who plays for UMMC Ekaterinburg during the WNBA offseason, called Yekaterinburg her “second home.” She said she was moved by the comradeship she found with her teammates there and by the enthusiasm of her fans, especially the young girls who would wait outside the team’s change rooms to greet her. “That’s why I kept coming back.”
The athlete apologized to her teams in Russia and the United States, to her parents and her spouse. She said she was aware of people talking about her as “a political pawn” but distanced herself from such language and said she hoped it would play no role in the court’s decision.
“I never meant to hurt anybody, to put in jeopardy the Russian population or violate any Russian laws,” she noted.
A short time later, as the judge read through her sentencing, Griner sat in the metal defendant’s cage in the courtroom and listened to the outcome through an interpreter. She did not speak to journalists after the hearing ended. Her lawyers promised an appeal and called the verdict “absolutely unreasonable,” saying the court “completely ignored all the evidence of the defense, and most importantly, the guilty plea.”
The White House reacted quickly. “Today, American citizen Brittney Griner received a prison sentence that is one more reminder of what the world already knew: Russia is wrongfully detaining Brittney,” President Biden said in a statement. “It’s unacceptable, and I call on Russia to release her immediately so she can be with her wife, loved ones, friends, and teammates.”
Biden pledged that his administration would “continue to work tirelessly and pursue every possible avenue” to return Griner and former security consultant Paul Whelan to the United States. Whelan is serving a 16-year sentence of hard labor after being convicted of spying in 2020. He says he was framed.