US basketball star Brittney Griner appeared again in court in Chimki on Friday. The American faces up to ten years in prison in a drug trial. Last week, Griner pleaded guilty to carrying vaporizer cartridges containing cannabis oil, but said she had no intention of violating Russian law. Now, at Friday’s meeting, the defense team presented evidence to support this. Defense attorneys now say Griner was prescribed medicinal cannabis by a doctor. A US embassy official in Moscow said the government will do everything it can to free US citizens wrongfully detained in Russia. The next hearing is scheduled to take place at the end of July. Griner was taken into custody at a Moscow airport on February 17. After months in custody, she was charged with the intentional importation of narcotics. Washington has heavily criticized Griner’s incarceration. Russian authorities said the trial was not politically motivated, despite strained relations with the United States. Moscow recently responded to speculation that Griner could be exchanged for a Russian citizen imprisoned in the United States. According to Russia’s deputy foreign minister, the allegations are “hype” that is not helpful in Griner’s case.
Source: Stern
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