American basketball star Brittney Griner was convicted in Russia on Thursday of drug possession and sentenced to nine years in prison after a politically charged trial that came amid rising tensions between Moscow and Washington over Ukraine and could lead to a high-stakes prisoner swap between the two world powers.
Greener, 31, a two-time U.S. Olympic champion and eight-time All-Star with the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, listened blankly as an interpreter translated Judge Anna Sotnikova’s sentence. The judge also imposed a fine of 1 million rubles (about $16,000).
“I never wanted to hurt anyone, to endanger the Russian population or to violate any Russian laws. I made an honest mistake and I hope your decision will not end my life here,” Griner told the court earlier Thursday, apologizing to his family, teammates, fans and the Russian people.
U.S. basketball player Brittney Griner, who was detained at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport and later charged with illegal possession of cannabis, stands in a dock before a court hearing in Khimki outside Moscow, Russia, August 4, 2022. EVGENIA NOVOJHENINA/REUTERS
“I know everyone keeps talking about political pawns and politics, but I hope that’s far away from this courtroom… I hope you consider all the documents, all the character lists that everyone sent on my behalf.. . This is my second home and all I wanted to do was just win championships and make them proud,” she said.
US President Joe Biden condemned the conviction and sentence as “unacceptable”.
“I call on Russia to release her immediately so she can be with her wife, loved ones, friends and teammates,” Biden said, adding that he would continue to work to bring home Greiner and Paul Whelan, an American imprisoned in Russia on a conviction for espionage.
As Griner was led from court after the verdict, she told reporters, “I love my family.” Her lawyers said she was very upset, stressed and could hardly speak.
Earlier in the session, with a sentence almost certain, an emotional Griner made a final appeal to the court for leniency. She said she had no intention of breaking the law by carrying cannabis oil vape cartridges when she flew to Moscow in February to play basketball in the city of Yekaterinburg.
“I want to apologize to my teammates, my club, my fans and the city of (Ekaterinburg) for my mistake that I made and the inconvenience that I caused them,” Griner said, his voice shaking. “I also want to apologize to my parents, my siblings, the Phoenix Mercury organization at home, the amazing women of the WNBA and my amazing husband at home.”
Under Russian law, Griner, 31, faces up to 10 years in prison, but judges have considerable discretion in sentencing.
If she is not freed, attention will turn to the possibility of a high-stakes prisoner swap that was floated last week by US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to his Russian counterpart.
Griner said Yekaterinburg, a city east of the Ural Mountains, had become her “second home.”
“I had no idea that the team, the cities, the fans, my teammates would make such an impression on me in the 6 and a half years I spent here,” she said. “I distinctly remember walking out of the gym and all the little girls that were in the stands there waiting for me and that kept me coming back here.”
Prosecutor Nikolai Vlasenko insisted that Griner had deliberately packaged the cannabis oil and asked the court to fine Briner 1 million rubles (about $16,700) in addition to the prison sentence.
Lawyers for the Phoenix Mercury center and the two-time Olympic gold medalist tried to support Griner’s claim that she had no criminal intent and that the boxes ended up in her luggage by mistake. They presented character witnesses from Yekaterinburg, the team she plays for in the WNBA offseason, and written testimony from a doctor who said he prescribed cannabis to treat pain from injuries sustained during her basketball career.
Her attorney, Maria Blagovolina, argued that Greener only used cannabis in Arizona, where medical marijuana is legal.
She emphasized that Griner was packing hastily after a grueling flight and suffering from the effects of COVID-19. Blagovolina also pointed out that the analysis of the cannabis found on Griner was flawed and in violation of legal procedures.
Blagovolina asked the court to acquit Griner, noting that she has no criminal record and hailing her role in the “development of Russian basketball.”
Another defenseman, Alexander Boykov, highlighted Griner’s role in leading her Yekaterinburg team to multiple championships, noting that she was loved and admired by her teammates. He told the judge that the sentence would undermine Russia’s efforts to develop national sports and make Moscow’s call to depoliticize sports sound shallow.
Boykov added that even after her arrest, Griner won the sympathy of both guards and inmates, who supported her with shouts of “Britney, everything will be fine!” when she went for a walk in the prison.
Before the trial began in July, the State Department designated her as “unlawfully detained,” moving her case under the supervision of its special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, effectively the government’s chief hostage negotiator.
Then last week, in an extraordinary move, Blinken spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, urging him to accept a deal that would see Griner and Whelan released.
The conversation between Lavrov and Blinken marked the most high-level contact between Washington and Moscow since Russia sent troops into Ukraine more than five months ago. Direct outreach against Greener is at odds with US efforts to isolate the Kremlin.
People familiar with the proposal said it called for Greiner and Whelan to be swapped for notorious arms dealer Victor Booth, who is serving a prison sentence in the United States. It underscores the public pressure the White House is facing to release Greener.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Monday that Russia had made a “malicious” response to the U.S. government’s offer, a counteroffer that U.S. officials did not consider serious. She declined to elaborate.
Russian officials scoffed at the US statements on the case, saying they showed disrespect for Russian law. They remained poker-faced, urging Washington to discuss the issue through “quiet diplomacy without releasing speculative information.”
In a handwritten letter from Greener that was delivered to the White House last month, the WNBA player wrote how terrified she was that she could be imprisoned in Russia “forever.”
Griner’s wife Cheryl told “CBS Mornings” that when she read the letter, she felt the fear Griner felt.
“She’s probably the strongest person I know, so she doesn’t say things like that lightly. It means she’s really terrified that she might never see us again. You know, I share the same feelings,” Cherrell said.
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