International News: Russian court rejects appeal of American gold medalist, Brittney Griner

Published by BBNTEAM at October 25, 2022

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Posted: Tuesday, October 25, 2022. 11:53 am CST.

By Zoila Palma Gonzalez: American two-time Olympic Gold medalist, Brittney Griner remains behind bars in Russia, BBC reports.

A Russian court rejected an appeal by Griner against her 9-year jail term for drug charges.

State officials in Moscow said the sentence was “fair”.

During her appeal hearing, Griner apologized for her “honest mistake” saying it had been “very, very stressful”.

In August, Griner was convicted of smuggling and possessing cannabis oil.

Griner’s attorney, Alexander Boykov, said his team hoped that a prisoner exchange would be possible.

Earlier this year, the Kremlin posed the possibility of a prisoner swap between the US and Russia involving the basketball player.

Meanwhile, the White House called the legal proceedings a “sham”.

US national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said Griner was being “wrongfully detained under intolerable circumstances” and that President Joe Biden had called for her release immediately.

A top US diplomat, who attended the hearing, called the sentence “excessive and disproportionate”.

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