White House Affirms Brittney Griner Is ‘Wrongfully Detained’ After Guilty Plea In Russian Cannabis Case, Prompting Calls For Domestic Reform
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The White House is maintaining that WNBA star Brittney Griner is “wrongfully detained” in Russia even after she pleaded guilty to unlawfully possessing cannabis vape cartridges in the country. But as American officials continue to seek her release, questions are being raised about whether federal marijuana prohibition in the U.S. is undermining its position in the case. Some wondered whether Griner’s guilty plea to a charge punishable by up to 10 years in prison would impact the State Department’s earlier designation of the athlete as a wrongfully detained American national. But at a briefing on Thursday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre repeatedly affirmed that the U.S. stance has not changed. “We believe that the Russian Federation has wrongfully detained Brittney Griner, and she is in intolerable circumstances right now,” Jean-Pierre said. “We are going to do everything that we can—the president has this top of mind—to make sure that we get Brittney home safely.”

“We’ve been clear from day one that, when it comes to U.S. nationals who are being held abroad, who are being held wrongfully, detained wrongfully, who have been held hostage, we are going to do everything that we can [and] use every means that we have to bring them home,” she said. Reforms to U.S. federal marijuana policies wouldn’t change the fact that Russia enforces severe penalties for marijuana, but the ongoing criminalization of cannabis domestically hasn’t gone ignored by Russian officials. A spokesperson for the country’s foreign minister has made clear that they feel there was nothing improper about the athlete’s February detention at a Moscow airport, and he made a point to say that marijuana possession is also “punishable in some U.S. states.” Maritza Perez, director of the office of national affairs at the Drug Policy Alliance, told Marijuana Moment that…

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Source : White House Affirms Brittney Griner Is ‘Wrongfully Detained’ After Guilty Plea In Russian Cannabis Case, Prompting Calls For Domestic Reform

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