Here’s a small detail that may help illustrate why Russia’s detention of WNBA star Brittney Griner is about far more than basketball or the cannabis charges to which she pleaded guilty today. The Reuters story reporting on her guilty plea comes with a disclaimer reading, “This content was produced in Russia where the law restricts coverage of Russian military operations in Ukraine.” So there’s some context for why Griner’s trial this week is rather a big deal, internationally.
Griner, a two-time Olympic medalist and star center for the Phoenix Mercury, was arrested at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport in late February as she tried to return to the US, just days before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In May, the US State Department said it considers Griner to have been “wrongly detained,” and the US government has been working to get her released. She could face up to 10 years in prison.
As Yr Wonkette noted in May, Russian prisons are terrible for Russians, and probably would be even far more dangerous for Griner, who’s Black and gay. The Putin regime has made oppression of gay Russians a priority in its attempts to pander to Putin’s nationalist base, and it’s worked so great that many Republicans in the US wish they could make America Russia themselves.
CNN reports that in court today, Griner said
she had not intended to commit a crime, state news agency RIA Novosti reported. Speaking through an interpreter, Griner said she had not meant to carry drugs in her luggage, but that it was the result of her packing in a hurry, the report said.
Griner left the courtroom without giving any comment to reporters, and her next hearing is set for July 14.
Reuters adds that Griner said, “I’d like to plead guilty, your honour. But there was no intent. I didn’t want to break the law,” speaking in English, which was then translated into Russian.
She also said that she would “like to give my testimony later. I need time to prepare,” which will probably happen at that next hearing.
On Monday, Reuters reported that Griner had sent a letter to President Joe Biden, asking for his help in securing her release from Russia.
“As I sit here in a Russian prison, alone with my thoughts and without the protection of my wife, family, friends, Olympic jersey, or any accomplishments, I’m terrified I might be here forever,” she wrote in a letter, excerpts of which have been shared by her representatives.
“On the 4th of July, our family normally honors the service of those who fought for our freedom, including my father who is a Vietnam War Veteran.
“It hurts thinking about how I usually celebrate this day because freedom means something completely different to me this year.”
Griner noted that the 2020 election was her first time voting, and that she’d voted for Biden; and asked him to keep her and other Americans detained by Russia in his thoughts.
I miss my wife! I miss my family! I miss my teammates! It kills me to know they are suffering so much right now. I am grateful for whatever you can do at this moment to get me home.
Yesterday, Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris spoke by phone with Griner’s wife, Cherelle, according to a White House statement, and let her know that they’re working to free Griner and other US detainees. In her own statement, Cherelle expressed gratitude and said
While I will remain concerned and outspoken until she is back home, I am hopeful in knowing that the President read my wife’s letter and took the time to respond. I know BG will be able to find comfort in knowing she has not been forgotten.
The Washington Post reports that at Griner’s hearing today, Elizabeth Rood, the deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in Moscow, handed Griner a letter from Biden and told reporters that Griner was doing well, at least under the circumstances, and that she had access to books in English.
The diplomatic wrangling over Griner and a possible prisoner exchange to release her continue; before her hearing, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov grumbled that the US government and media weren’t helping Griner’s hopes for release, telling journalists,
The American side’s attempts to foment hype and make noise in the public environment are understandable, but they don’t help to practically resolve issues.
So that sounds Russian as all get-out, although Rybakov also said once the trial was over and a verdict announced, then Russia would be willing to talk more, because
“we have a long-established form for discussing these matters.”
“Clearly the necessary judicial procedures have not been completed. Until then, there is no nominal, formal, procedural basis for any further steps at all,” Ryabkov said.
Here’s hoping that Ms. Griner makes it home soon and that she and her wife can be reunited. We haven’t really seen any expert opinion on whether the guilty plea will improve her chances of release, and we sure hope her attorneys know what they’re doing.
[CNN / Reuters / WaPo / Reuters / NPR]
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