At the same time as U.S. and Russian diplomats are discussing a potential prisoner exchange involving Brittney Griner, the American basketball star’s attorneys are exhausting all available options to try to reduce her nine-year prison sentence. Griner’s defense team on Monday filed an appeal against the verdict handed down earlier this month by a Russian court, attorney Maria Blagovolina confirmed via email to Yahoo Sports. Blagovolina did not respond to a question seeking an explanation… Source link
Read More »Mercury, Sun honor Brittney Griner with emotional tribute after Russia prison sentence
Just hours after she was sentenced to nine years in prison on the other side of the world, the Phoenix Mercury and Connecticut Sun came together for a touching, emotional tribute to Brittney Griner ahead of their game on Thursday night. Both the Mercury and the Sun joined arms together at halfcourt at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut for 42 seconds, honoring Griner’s jersey number, while fans in attendance started chanting, “bring her home.” “It’s not anything we’re politicizing,”… Source link
Read More »Brittney Griner found guilty in Russian court
Brittney Griner, center, is escorted in a court room prior to a hearing, in Khimki just outside Moscow, Russia, Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko) Inside her metal courtroom cage, a solemn, stone-faced Brittney Griner learned how long she’ll be locked away in Russian prison if the Biden administration can’t broker a deal to secure her release. A Russian judge handed down a harsh 9-year sentence on Thursday, rejecting the WNBA star’s emotional apology and plea for… Source link
Read More »Brittney Griner verdict and sentencing imminent; prosecutors seek 9 1/2 years
Russian prosecutors asked a judge during closing arguments on Thursday to sentence Brittney Griner to 9 ½ years in prison, just shy of the maximum 10 years that she is eligible to receive. Both a verdict and potential sentence in the WNBA star’s drug-smuggling trial are expected Thursday, her attorney told reporters. Closing arguments ended with Griner herself having the final word. Standing in the defendant’s cage at the back of the tiny courtroom, Griner took responsibility for her… Source link
Read More »Elon Musk says US should ‘free some people in jail for weed here too’ after Biden reportedly offered to swap a Russian arms dealer for imprisoned WNBA star Brittney Griner
Brittney Griner in a Russian jail cell (left), Elon Musk (right)ALEXANDER ZEMLIANICHENKO/POOL/AFP via Getty Images (left) and JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images (right) Elon Musk responded to reports of a US-Russia prisoner exchange to free WNBA player Brittney Griner. “Maybe free some people in jail for weed here too?” he tweeted alongside a meme on Sunday. Griner was imprisoned in Russia after officials found vape cartridges containing hashish oil in her luggage. Elon Musk tweeted Sunday in… Source link
Read More »Blinken urges Lavrov to accept proposed Brittney Griner prisoner swap
Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov spoke by phone on Friday about a U.S. proposal to secure the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner and fellow jailed American Paul Whelan. Blinken said he “pressed the Kremlin to accept” the offer during what he described as a “frank and direct conversation.” “I urged Foreign Minister Lavrov to move forward with that proposal,” Blinken said. “I’m not going to characterize his response and I’m not… Source link
Read More »Experts say U.S.’s ‘substantial proposal’ may not be enough to bring Brittney Griner home
On Wednesday afternoon, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that the U.S. had offered Russia a “substantial proposal” aimed at securing the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner and former Marine Paul Whelan. Now the question is whether it will be enough to bring the two jailed Americans home. Will the Russians accept a 2-for-1 trade for a notorious arms trafficker who for years has been atop the Kremlin’s prisoner exchange wish list? Or will they seek to extract more concessions… Source link
Read More »U.S. has offered ‘substantial proposal’ to Russia in exchange for Brittney Griner, Paul Whelan
The Biden administration has “put a substantial proposal on the table” aimed at bringing WNBA star Brittney Griner and fellow jailed American Paul Whelan home from Russia, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday. Blinken declined to offer details on the proposed deal with Russia, but convicted arms trafficker Viktor Bout has for years been atop the Kremlin’s prisoner exchange wish list. Russian state media outlets have previously floated the possibility of an exchange involving… Source link
Read More »Brittney Griner poised to testify in Russian court
After several calm days of her legal team calling character witnesses on her behalf and arguing for a lenient sentence, Brittney Griner’s next appearance in Russian court is likely to be a bit more intense. The judge is expected to directly interrogate her on Wednesday, her attorney Maria Blagovolina told Yahoo Sports. Griner faces up to 10 years in Russian prison after she flew into a Moscow airport in February and Russian customs officials allegedly found vape cartridges containing… Source link
Read More »Russia calls out United States in Brittney Griner case as Stephen Curry, others speak out at ESPYs
Russia is speaking out against the United States in the Brittney Griner case, just one day after the Phoenix Mercury star was front and center at the ESPYs. Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday that the United States classifying Griner as “wrongfully detained” shows blatant disrespect for Russian law. Even though marijuana is legal in various states, Zakharova said, it doesn’t matter one bit in Russia. “If a U.S. citizen was taken in connection with… Source link
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