Brittney Griner’s Lawyer Says She’s ‘Stressed’ In Russian Prison While Waiting For Her Appeal Hearing, Following Nine-Year Sentence

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Brittney Griner is reportedly stressing about her future as she waits to hear back some assuring news regarding the start of her appeal hearings. As previously reported, the WNBA star was sentenced to nine-and-a-half years in prison on August 4 on drug smuggling charges, after having arrived at a Moscow airport with vape capsules containing less than one gram of medicinal cannabis oil in her luggage back in February.

Griner’s lawyer Maria Blagovolina tells PEOPLE that she not only finds the ruling “absolutely unreasonable,” but their legal team has also waited close to a month since the sentencing and has yet to hear back regarding their appeal request. “Brittney is stressed and very much concerned with the future,” she said. The attorney added that appealing a court order rarely sees a judge change the Russian prison sentence that was initially given, but they’ve been determined to at least give it a try.

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“We need to use every legal opportunity that we have, and appeal is one of these opportunities,” Blagovolina continued, while Griner’s second lawyer Alexander Boykov stressed that even if the request for an appeal does end up being successful, it will take several months to complete the legal process. And based on her legal team’s knowledge, this would strongly imply that the 31-year-old may not be getting out this year after all.

Griner was taken into custody shortly after her airport arrival, and though she says she tried to explain the situation to authorities in Moscow — that she had been rushing as she packed her belongings for the flight — officials apparently didn’t provide her with a translator that could even tell her about her rights in Russia.

RELATED: Update: Dennis Rodman No Longer Plans On Traveling To Russia To Help Brittney Griner After Being Discouraged By U.S. Government

Aside from the term she has been ordered to remain in prison, the athlete has also been hit with a fine of one million rubles, which is around $15,000. President Biden has since reacted to the sentencing, insisting that the White House would do its best efforts in cooperating with Russia in a potential trade that would see Griner return home in favor of convicted murderer Vadim Krasikov.

“Holding two wrongfully detained Americans hostage for the release of a Russian assassin in a third country’s custody is not a serious counter-offer,” Adrienne Watson, who is a spokesperson for the National Security Council, told CNN pertaining to the trade deal. It is a bad faith attempt to avoid the deal on the table that Russia should take.”

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