Brittney Griner's lawyers appeal nine-year prison sentence in Russia

The lawyers for U.S. women's basketball star Brittney Griner have filed an appeal against her nine-year prison sentence in Russia for drug possession. Griner, a center for the Phoenix Mercury who had been playing for Ekaterinburg of the Russian league during the WNBA off-season, was arrested in February at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport after e-cigarettes containing cannabis oil were found in her luggage. The player was sentenced on August 4.

Lawyer Maria Blagovolina said on Monday that the appeal had been filed, but declined to give details. The appeal will most likely be based on alleged violations in the course of the investigation. Griner's defense team argued in court that some of the files in his case had been written without being translated into English, but it is unclear how soon the appeal will be heard.

A formal appeal could indicate that a political agreement for a prisoner swap between Russia and the United States involving Griner has not yet been reached. Russian officials have said they would consider a swap, but only after the American's appeal process has been exhausted and her sentence has taken effect

Apelan la condena a nueve años de cárcel de la basquetbolista estadounidense Brittney Griner en Rusia. pic.twitter.com/dVRcHN995w

— Noticias Telemundo (@TelemundoNews) August 15, 2022

After the conviction, lawyers stated that the sentence was excessive and that defendants in similar cases have received an average sentence of about five years and a third of them have been granted probation. Brittney Griner admitted that she had the cannabis oil canisters in her luggage, but said she packed them by mistake and had no criminal intent. Her defense team submitted written statements claiming that she had been prescribed cannabis to treat pain.

Before her conviction, the U.S. State Department declared that Griner had been unjustly detained. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken took the unusual step of publicly revealing in July that the United States had made a "substantial proposal" for Griner to return home, along with Paul Whelan, who is serving a 16-year sentence in Russia for espionage. He gave no further details, but AP and other media have reported that the U.S. has offered to release Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer serving a 25-year sentence who once earned the nickname "Merchant of Death."