Everything to Know About the WNBA Star in Russian Custody
By
Olivia Truffaut-Wong and
Bindu Bansinath
Photo: Barry Gossage/NBAE via Getty Images
As tensions between the U.S. and Russia continue to rise amid
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, an American WNBA star has been detained in Russia for months. Brittney Griner, the two-time Olympic gold medalist who plays for the Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA and for Russia’s UMMC Ekaterinburg during the off-season, was arrested on drug charges in February after Customs found vape cartridges in her luggage at the airport. U.S. officials
met with Griner last month, and while a spokesperson from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow said she was in “
good condition,” it remains unclear when she will be released. Her trial, which legal experts believe
will end in a conviction, began July 1. Griner has
pleaded guilty to drug charges.
Brittney Griner was arrested in Russia on March 6 and is currently on trial for drug charges.
Russia first announced Griner’s detention on March 6, telling the world it had an American basketball player in custody. The player was later identified as Griner, and footage
allegedly showing her stop at Customs was released. According to the New York
Times, Russian law enforcement claimed Griner had been found with vape cartridges containing hashish oil and opened a criminal case against her on drug-smuggling charges, which carry a jail sentence of up to
ten years in a penal colony.
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After Russia announced Griner’s arrest, her agent, Lindsay Kagawa Colas, told ESPN they were “in close contact with her, her legal representation in Russia, her family, her teams, and the WNBA and NBA.” Colas’s statement continued, “As this is an ongoing legal matter, we are not able to comment further on the specifics of her case, but can confirm that as we work to get her home, her mental and physical health remain our primary concern.” Griner’s wife,
Cherelle Griner, also released a statement on Instagram thanking fans for their “prayers and support” and asking for privacy. Meanwhile, the WNBA released a statement offering Griner its “full support” and noting, “Our main priority is her swift and safe return to the United States.” Phoenix Mercury and
USA Basketball released similar statements.
Griner’s arrest in Russia is especially troubling given her high-profile status as an American athlete and her identity as an
LGBTQ+ Black woman. Russian president
Vladimir Putin has taken an active stance against
LGBTQ+ rights, having declared in 2020 that he would never legalize
same-sex marriage in the country.
U.S. secretary of State
Antony Blinken acknowledged Griner’s arrest during a March 6 press conference, saying, “Whenever an American is detained anywhere in the world, we of course stand ready to provide every possible assistance. And that includes in Russia.”
While coordinated efforts to secure Griner’s freedom have
remained private, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department claims the department has been “
doing everything we can” to support Griner and work toward her safe release. On March 23, consular officials
reportedly visited Griner in the cell she shares with two Russian inmates. While government officials are choosing to work
quietly on Griner’s case for fear that overpublicizing it will adversely affect her detention, many of Griner’s supporters are outraged that the government isn’t waging a louder campaign for her freedom.
In April, the
Biden administration announced that
Trevor Reed — a U.S. Marine veteran who has been detained in Russia since 2019 — had been released as part of a prisoner swap between Russia and the U.S., renewing scrutiny of Griner’s case. In June, a spokesperson for the Kremlin denied Griner was being held hostage or used as a political pawn, telling
NBC in an interview that she was no different from “hundreds and hundreds of Russian citizens that were sentenced for carrying hashish.” The spokesperson added, “Why should we make an exception for a foreign citizen?”
Griner’s detention has already been extended multiple times, which the
Times reports is typical of Russian courts. Last month, dozens of organizations representing women, people of color, and LGBTQ voters sent a letter to the
Biden administration, urging it to negotiate a deal for Griner’s release as she “continues to endure inhumane treatment, deprived of contact with her family.” On June 27, Griner’s lawyer told the
Times he expects her trial to take up to two months, a timeline contingent upon the court’s workload. According to the
Times, he added that Griner has “no complaints” about her current detention conditions.
During her July 7 court appearance — which took place hours after a Russian foreign minister reportedly accused the Biden administration of trying to “
foment hype” over Griner’s case — Griner admitted she brought cannabis into Russia but said she didn’t mean to break the law. “There was no intent,” Griner told the court. “I’d like to give my testimony later. I need time to prepare.” Experts in Russian law believe
admitting guilt is the best strategy to secure a lesser sentence; per
CBS, it’s also a necessary prerequisite to a potential prisoner exchange.
As her trial began, Griner wrote a personal letter to the president.
On July 4, Griner’s family delivered a handwritten letter from the basketball player to President Joe Biden. “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,” Griner wrote. “I realize you are dealing with so much, but please don’t forget about me and the other American detainees. Please do all you can to bring us home.”
Griner reportedly told Biden she voted for him in 2020 — her first time voting in a presidential race. “I believe in you. I still have so much good to do with my freedom that you can help restore,” she wrote.
The White House
confirmed Biden received the letter, with press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre saying the issue was “very personal to him.” When reached for comment by the
Times, Adrienne Watson, a spokeswoman for the National Security Council, stressed that the government “continues to work aggressively” for Griner’s release and said that the “president’s team” was in contact with Griner’s family but that whatever relationship they had seems to be devolving.
Griner’s wife, Cherelle Griner, appeared on
CBS Mornings on July 5 to defend her wife against Russia’s allegations of drug trafficking and express her disappointment in Biden. Cherelle said that while she doesn’t know why her wife decided to write to Biden directly, she suspects it’s because of his failure to meet with her family directly. “I think the decision for her to feel the need to directly reach out to President Biden is because the failed attempts that we have had as a family,” she said, adding that in her letters, Griner frequently asked whether Cherelle had been able to meet with Biden. She added that she was “terrified” for her wife and her mental health after seeing photos of her during her first court appearance.
While she previously kept her media appearances and communications to a minimum, Cherelle Griner said she was done being quiet. “I did that, and respectfully, we’re over 140 days at this point — that does not work. And so I will not be quiet anymore,” she said. “They are not moving, they are not doing anything, and so my wife is struggling, and we have to help her.” According to a
statement released by the White House, Cherelle spoke on the phone with Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris on Wednesday. Biden reportedly assured her he is “working to secure” Griner’s freedom and read her a draft of a letter he planned to send her.
Griner sent a message to her wife as she prepares to testify at trial.
Griner appeared in court on Tuesday as her trial continued with expert testimony on the
medicinal use of cannabis. Griner’s defense previously presented a letter from a U.S. doctor recommending that the athlete use medical cannabis to treat chronic pain, but it’s unclear if this will help her case, as all cannabis use is illegal in Russia. Other witnesses for the defense, as reported by
ABC News, included the UMMC team doctor, who testified that Griner never tested positive for drugs while playing for the Russian club team.
Griner, who held up
photos of her wife, teammates, and friends in court on Tuesday, isn’t set to testify until Wednesday, but she did use her Tuesday appearance to send a message to her wife, Cherelle, who just graduated law school. “Good luck on the bar exam,” she told an
ABC News reporter. When asked if she had any complaints in her detainment, she said, “No, no complaints. Just waiting patiently.” Elizabeth Rood, the U.S. Embassy’s charge d’affaires, told reporters that
Griner “confirms that she is doing okay and as well as can be expected under these circumstances.”
On Monday, Department of State spokesperson Ned Price told reporters that Griner’s case remained a priority for the department and Secretary of State Blinken. “We are working around the clock, behind the scenes, quietly, to do everything we possibly can to see to it that Brittany Griner’s ordeal, just as Paul Whelan’s ordeal, is put to an end just as soon as can be possibly managed,”
he said.
