US Basketball Star Pleads Guilty in Russia Drugs Trial
2022-07-08
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1American basketball star Brittney Griner admitted guilt to drug possession in a Russian court on Thursday.
2She also said she did not mean to break the law.
3"I'd like to plead guilty, your honor. But there was no intent. I didn't want to break the law," Griner said in English.
4Her plea was then repeated in Russian for the court in Moscow.
5One of Greiner's lawyers added, "Brittney stressed that she committed the crime out of carelessness, getting ready to board a plane to Russia in a hurry, not intending to break Russian law."
6Griner was detained in February at the airport in Moscow after smoking devices with cannabis oil were reportedly found in her belongings.
7She could face up to 10 years in Russian prison if she is convicted of transporting illegal drugs.
8Griner's next court hearing is set to take place on July 14.
9Griner's lawyer told reporters they were hoping for the lightest sentencing possible.
10The Russian foreign ministry said Griner could appeal her sentence once a verdict has been given.
11Griner is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and a member of the Phoenix Mercury - one of the teams of the Women's National Basketball Association, or WNBA.
12In the off-season, Griner competes for the Russian team UMMC Ekaterinburg.
13The trial began last week in Moscow.
14Her arrest five months ago came one week before Russia launched its war in Ukraine.
15The U.S. and Western allies have helped Ukraine with weapons and supplies in the fight against the Russian invasion.
16Elizabeth Rood is deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.
17She told reporters after the hearing that she spoke to Griner in the courtroom and shared a letter with her from President Joe Biden.
18Griner, she said, is eating well and is able to pass time reading books.
19Rood said, "I would like again to emphasize the commitment of the U.S. government at the very highest level to bring home safely Ms. Griner and all U.S. citizens wrongfully detained."
20The U.S. State Department has also put Griner's case under the supervision of the government's chief hostage negotiator.
21Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov objected to the U.S. description of Griner as "wrongfully detained."
22He warned that U.S. criticism and comments about the Russian judicial system, "make it difficult to engage in detailed discussion of any possible exchanges."
23When asked about the possibility of Griner being exchanged for a Russian citizen jailed in the U.S., Ryabkov said that until her trial is over "there are no... reasons to talk about any further steps."
24Russian news media have suggested that Griner could be exchanged for Russian arms trader Viktor Bout.
25Called "the Merchant of Death," Bout is serving a 25-year sentence in the U.S.
26He was convicted of plotting to kill U.S. citizens and providing aid to a terrorist organization.
27Russia has campaigned for Bout's release for years.
28But the severity of Bout's crime as compared to Griner's reported offense makes the one-to-one exchange unlikely.
29Others have suggested that Griner could be traded along with Paul Whelan.
30The former U.S. Marine and security director is serving a 16-year sentence in Russia after being convicted of spying.
31The United States, however, has repeatedly said he was trapped.
32I'm Ashley Thompson.