United States WNBA Star Brittney Griner Begins Her Nine-Year Term as Her Appeal is Denied by Russian Court

After a Moscow regional court affirmed her drug conviction, the American basketball star will start serving a nine-year term in a Russian penal colony. In a courthouse outside of Moscow earlier this year, Judge Anna Sotnikova delivered Griner's sentence, which came near to the maximum 10-year term for the narcotics possession and smuggling counts she faced. Russian prosecutors had requested 9 1/2 years in prison. In addition to the punishment, there is a 1 million rubles fine. The nine-year sentence given to the WNBA star is generally seen as being out of proportion to her crime; Griner is accused of possessing and smuggling less than a gram of hashish oil.

Former inmates and activists warned that when Brittney Griner is transported to a penal colony, the modern-day equivalent of the notorious Russian gulag, to serve out a nine-year sentence, she will join a regime of seclusion, arduous labor, and psychological torture. Human rights organizations, the U.S. State Department, and others who have regularly spoken with Russian detainees claim that many of the facilities routinely commit human rights violations. The fact that the WNBA star is a homosexual Black woman raises potential unknowns in a justice system that is already notoriously harsh and distant.

The last remaining chance for the WNBA star to return to her home country is a prisoner swap between the US and Russia. A crisis management expert and spokesman for the Bring Our Families Home Campaign who assisted in the release of American soldier Trevor Reed from Russia is doubtful that Putin will soon be willing to negotiate. He believes that the Russians are reluctant to give up the "once in a lifetime opportunity for Putin to cause chaos in our country." He said that Russia's delay may include a component of revenge. The US administration frequently rejected Russian offers to exchange prisoners when they came to the White House and the US government would routinely rebuff the proposal.

But Biden assures that efforts to free Brittney Griner are "not stopping" in the United States. At a press conference, Biden mentioned both Griner and other Americans being held by the Kremlin, which is infamous for imprisoning political prisoners, saying, “We are in constant contact with Russian authorities to get Brittney and others out."

Because of Russia's diplomatic tension with the United States, the Biden administration has been under intense pressure to bring Griner home, whose supporters claim she is being used as a pawn in a political game. In July, Biden approved a prospective prisoner exchange to send the basketball player and other prisoners home. However, talks broke down when Russia insisted that the transaction also include an assassin who had been convicted in the US.

Article Written by: Jennifer Arinze

Sources:
WSJ - Brittney Griner Sentenced to Nine Years in Prison for Bringing Drugs Into Russia – August 4, 2022, available at https://www.wsj.com/articles/brittney-griner-russia-trial-11659617895?mod=article_inline
WSJ - Brittney Griner’s Appeal Denied by Russian Court – October 25, 2022, available at https://www.wsj.com/articles/brittney-griners-appeal-denied-by-moscow-court-11666701307
NBCDFW - Brittney Griner Faces Difficult Conditions at Russian Penal Colony, Former Prisoners and Advocates Say – October 27, 2022, available at https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/national-international/brittney-griner-faces-difficult-conditions-at-russian-penal-colony-former-prisoners-and-advocates-say/3107615/
USDOS - 2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Russia – 2021, available at https://www.state.gov/reports/2021-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/russia/
HuffPost - Biden Promises U.S. Is 'Not Stopping' Effort To Free Brittney Griner – October 25, 2022, available at https://www.huffpost.com/entry/joe-biden-brittney-griner_n_63582c24e4b08e0e60937680