The lawyers for “woke” U.S. women’s basketball player Brittney Griner have offered a last-ditch desperate excuse for the WNBA player after she pleaded guilty to drug charges in Russia.
Griner’s lawyers are trying to limit her jail sentence but she faces 10 years in a Russian prison.
As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine rages on, many fear she may get a raw deal.
In a bid to get her sentence down, Griner’s lawyers are arguing that she uses marijuana to treat pain from injuries she incurred playing basketball.
This is the best they have but it will not be enough as Griner will be a powerful asset for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Putin will likely assume that President Joe Biden will cave and give up the Russians we have locked up for serious crimes against America in exchange for a basketball player.
“With the prescription in place, Brittney may have used it for medical but not recreational purposes,” said Griner’s lawyer, Maria Blagovolina, partner at Rybalkin, Gortsunyan, Dyakin, and Partners law firm.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova was not impressed by the defense saying:
“If a U.S. citizen was taken in connection with the fact that she was smuggling drugs, and she does not deny this, then this should be commensurate with our Russian local laws and not with those adopted in San Francisco, New York, and Washington,” she said.
“You understand, if drugs are legalized in the United States — in a number of states — and this is done for a long time, and now the whole country will become drug addicted.
“This does not mean that all other countries are following the same path.”
According to Fox News:
Another hearing was then scheduled for Wednesday.
During the trial, a U.S. Embassy representative fainted in the courtroom. According to Russian media, the embassy representative tried to leave during the hearing and fainted at the door.
The person was reportedly taken to the hospital. It is unclear why the person fainted.
The U.S. State Department has classified Griner as “wrongfully detained.” Griner acknowledged she had the canisters with her but had no intention of breaking the law.
