Things already weren’t looking good for America-hating athlete Brittney Griner, who became (in)famous for refusing to appear on the court for the National Anthem following George Floyd’s death.
She’s since become even more infamous for being locked up in Russia on drug charges after being caught trying to smuggle a marijuana-derived oil into the Russian Federation and locked up by the Russkies, who take such things far more seriously than the United States.
Though she, her teammates, and various members of the US government have tried to press the Russians to release her, they have so far been intent on locking up the drug user, something that they just got closer to doing as Griner had to make a humiliating public appearance in a Russian courtroom. Fox News, reporting on what happened, notes that (emphasis ours):
The criminal trial was set for July 1, and the WNBA star was ordered to remain in custody for the duration of her criminal trial. The court in the Moscow suburb of Khimki extended her detention for another six months. She could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted.
Griner, who stands a massive six feet, nine inches tall, was seen being led into the court by the Russian police, sporting grey clothing and glasses.
As things currently stand, Fox News reports that Griner’s main hope of release is the US deciding to exchange her for a notorious arms dealer in what hardly seems a good or equal trade, saying:
Russian media has speculated about the potential of a prisoner swap for Griner with convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout, nicknamed the “Merchant of Death.” Bout is serving a 25-year sentence after he was convicted of conspiracy to kill Americans and providing aid to a terrorist organization. Russian officials recently downplayed any chance of the trade happening.
It seems unlikely that even Biden would trade an arms dealer that has helped kill Americans for an America-hating athlete that couldn’t stop smoking marijuana for long enough to not try smuggling into Russia, but anything is theoretically possible.
Secretary of State Blinken recently appeared on CNN and spoke with Jake Tapper about Griner’s case, saying that she was “not forgotten” and then going on to say:
“As a general proposition, Jake. I have got no higher priority than making sure that Americans who are being illegally detained in one way or another around the world come home. And that includes Paul Whelan. That includes Brittney Griner. That includes people in a number of other countries.”
However, while the hashish oil smuggling athlete might not be forgotten, what leverage Team Biden has to get her out is unclear. The aforementioned trade seems to be a very bad deal, the administration’s anti-Russian stance likely hasn’t made anyone in Russia willing to extend a favor to the US, and Griner was caught violating a reasonable and obvious law.
So, with that in mind, the news that she might face 10 years in a Russian prison is even worse for her, as it could very well happen.
By: Gen Z Conservative, editor of GenZConservative.com. Follow me on Facebook and Subscribe to My Email List
This story syndicated with permission from Gen Z Conservative