Comment A Russian prosecutor on Thursday asked a judge to sentence WNBA basketball star Brittney Griner to nine and a half years in prison on drug charges, and the defense team at her trial said the judge is expected to hand down her sentence by the evening. Seeking to approach the 10-year maximum, the state’s request ignored the athlete’s plea for leniency. Griner pleaded guilty in July to transporting cannabis oil vapor cartridges into the country. The prosecutor’s call for a harsh sentence for Griner – as well as a fine of 1 million rubles ($16,590) – came amid pleas from the United States for Russia to seriously consider its offer of a prisoner exchange to bring her home. A member of Griner’s legal team, Alexander Boykov, told the judge that Griner deserved to be acquitted despite her guilty plea, saying the prosecution had failed to prove criminal intent. In addition, she said, her rights were violated during the investigation and legal process. “We know that in Russia the drug laws are very strict,” Boykov said, “but Russia is also interested in its prestige in sports.” Griner’s career, and her playing for UMMC Ekaterinburg during the WNBA offseason, was a celebration of friendship between people, she continued. “She had many offers, but for some reason she chose cold Yekaterinburg, knowing how warmly she would be received there.” Prosecutors say the 0.702 grams of cannabis found in Griner’s luggage after she landed at Sheremetyevo International Airport in February was a “significant amount”. Griner testified last week that she was in a hurry when she packed, had no idea the items were in her bags and did not intend to violate Russian law. The Phoenix Mercury star testified that she uses hemp oil in the United States to treat chronic pain from injuries, but knew that bringing cannabis into Russia was illegal. She said she flew to Russia despite warnings from the US State Department about such travel because she did not want to disappoint her Russian team. The Biden administration is feeling enormous public pressure to secure her release, a backroom negotiation greatly complicated by the breakdown in relations between Washington and Moscow over the war in Ukraine. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov late last week, urging him to accept a deal with Griner and former national security adviser Paul Whelan, an American serving a 16-year prison sentence in Russia. Whelan, who was arrested in 2018 and convicted of espionage in 2020, says he was framed. Blinken, Lavrov discuss possible prisoner swap for Griner, Whelan The United States declined to say whether the pair would be exchanged for Russian Viktor Bout, an arms dealer arrested in a 2008 US sting operation in Thailand. The administration’s announcement of its proposed settlement appears to be an effort to limit criticism of its handling of the Griner case. But the Kremlin has told Washington to refrain from “loudpeak diplomacy,” with Russian foreign ministry officials repeatedly warning that public calls will not help its cause. John Kirby, a spokesman for the US National Security Council, said on Tuesday that the administration would not negotiate publicly. “We made a serious offer, we made a serious offer,” Kirby said. “And we urge the Russians to accept this offer because it was made in good faith and we know we can support it.” In previous years, the United States has resisted Russian pressure to hand over Bout, given the seriousness of his crimes. He was convicted in New York in 2011 and later sentenced to 25 years in prison for conspiring to sell surface-to-air missiles, AK-47s and explosives to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, knowing they planned to shoot down U.S. helicopters. A deal to bring Bout home would be a major political victory for Russian President Vladimir Putin, signaling to his domestic audience that despite unprecedented Western criticism and sanctions, he still has the clout to force the White House to negotiate with of. Bloomberg reported that as part of an exchange, Moscow may seek the release of a wealthy Russian businessman close to the Kremlin, Vladislav Klyushin, who pleaded not guilty in a Boston court in January to an alleged $82 million fraud. Klyushin claimed the case against him was “politically motivated” because of his ties to the Russian government.
