Brittney Griner’s Legal Team Files Appeal In Russian Drug Case
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Britney Griner’s legal team has filed an appeal of her prison sentence in her Russian drug case today (Aug. 15). According to ESPN, lawyer Maria Blagovolina and co-counsel Alexander Boykov claimed Griner’s sentencing was excessive. The grounds of the appeal, however, are not clear.
Griner was sentenced to nine years in a penal colony after she was convicted on drug charges by a Russian court earlier this month. The WNBA champion was found guilty of an attempt to smuggle illegal narcotics into the country after she was arrested at a Moscow airport in February for a marijuana vape pen that was found in her luggage.
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According to CBS News, Russia has confirmed its willingness to release Griner in a potential prisoner swap for convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout. Known as “The Merchant of Death,” Bout was arrested in Thailand in 2008 and then extradited to the United States. He is serving 25 years for conspiring to kill American citizens.
“The discussions on the very sensitive topic of an exchange are proceeding via the channels chosen by our presidents,” explained Alexander Datchiev, head of the North America department at the Russian Foreign Ministry, according to the Russian state-owned news agency TASS. “Silent diplomacy continues and should bear fruit if Washington, of course, is careful not to fall into propaganda.”
In July, the New York Times reported President Joe Biden’s administration offered to release Bout for both Griner and Paul Whelan, another U.S. citizen in Russian custody.
“These are awful and shameful steps to hold American citizens for political leverage,” expressed William J. Burns, the C.I.A. director. “The Russians are quite coldblooded about this right now.”
