Texas native Britney Griner, a WNBA All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist, has been in a Russian jail for over two months.
Griner was detained at a Moscow airport on February 17 after Russian authorities located vape cartridges allegedly containing oil derived from cannabis while searching her luggage. The offense would carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison if convicted.
Her detention came one week before Russia invaded Ukraine, a conflict that has pushed Russian tensions with the U.S. to their highest point in decades.
“It’s a trial lawyer’s nightmare since you have to conduct a trial when the larger political environment is negative,” William Butler, a Russian law expert and professor at Penn State Dickinson Law, told the Associated Press.
After the Russian League, Griner returned to the country where she played and took a break for the FIBA World Cup qualifying tournament.
Griner, 31, was the WNBA’s No.1 overall pick out of Baylor nine years ago. She helped lead the Phoenix Mercury to a championship in 2014 and the WNBA Finals last season.
Clarence Lusane, a Howard University political science professor specializing in criminal justice and drug policy, claims that Griner’s situation is made worse because she is a black American.
“There’s been a hyper-nationalism [under Putin] in Russia, so basically anyone who’s not considered Slavic is considered an outsider and a potential threat,” Lusane explained.
“She fits into that category,” he added. “There are many countries around the world where you do not want to get in trouble, and Russia is one of them.”
In March, Russian media reported that Griner’s detention and next court date were pushed back until May 19. Griner’s legal team has been working behind the scenes and has yet to make any statements.
The U.S. State Department generally cannot assist Americans detained abroad beyond consular visits and locating an attorney. The agency cannot communicate much unless the arrested individual waives their privacy rights, which Griner has not done.
So far, the office of the State Department that focuses on freeing Americans who are held hostage or wrongfully detained is not known to be involved in Griner’s case.
Ned Price, spokesman for the State Department, said last month, “[We are] doing everything we can to support Brittney Griner, to support her family and to work with them to do everything we can to see that she is treated appropriately and to seek her release.”
Last week, he said the U.S. frequently contacts her legal team and “broader network.”
However, the U.S. took a more active approach in the cases of Paul Whelan and Trevor Reed. In a previous statement, Price said Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke directly with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to call for their release.
The State Department’s comparatively reserved position in the Griner case has contributed to bringing issues of race and gender to the forefront of the conversation.
“We cannot ignore the fact that if Brittney Griner wasn’t a Black woman, it would be plastered across the news that she is being held as a political prisoner in Russia,” tweeted U.S. Representative Cori Bush (D-Missouri) on March 16.
We cannot ignore the fact that if Brittney Griner wasn’t a Black woman, it would be plastered across the news that she is being held as a political prisoner in Russia.
Free Brittney Griner.
— Cori Bush (@CoriBush) March 17, 2022
Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton joined many of Griner’s friends, family, and officials in calling for her release with a “Free Brittney” tweet on the same day.
Free Brittney. https://t.co/wqQrye2T3J
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) March 16, 2022
While many prominent people have shown outspoken support, other supporters have remained cautious about discussing Griner’s case for fear of antagonizing the situation.
“It’s a very delicate situation,” said Diana Taurasi, a fellow member of the Phoenix Mercury who played overseas earlier in her career. “I spent ten years [in Russia], so I know the way things work there.”
“It’s a dangerous world everywhere you go. It might change the perspective of different [WNBA players] going overseas,” she added. “That’s a personal choice people are gonna have to make.”
ESPN investigative reporter T.J. Quinn claimed on the “ESPN Daily” podcast last month that people close to Griner do not want the situation to be extensively covered and politicized for fear of her safety.
“If it becomes political, then her life is in the hands of one man: Vladimir Putin,” Quinn said. “If he decided, ‘I want to make an example of her because she is this powerful cultural symbol; she is a 6′ 9″, black, gay, American woman,’ it would create concerns for her safety, mainly because Russia is not very progressive when it comes to gender and sexuality.”
Quinn and others believe that the U.S. government knows if they make a big deal of Griner’s detention, Russia could potentially use her as leverage for Putin’s motives.
“Russians are great chess players,” said Peter Maggs, an expert in Russian law at the University of Illinois College of Law. “The more pawns you have, the greater your chance of eventual victory. And since things are not going their way, obviously, in Ukraine, any pawns they have they want to hold on to.”
