Legal professionals for WNBA star Brittney Griner, who’s on trial in Russia over possession of vape cartridges containing hashish oil, have offered the courtroom with paperwork exhibiting that the athlete is a registered medical marijuana affected person in Arizona.
Whereas her hashish affected person standing in a U.S. state doesn’t change the truth that marijuana is strictly unlawful in Russia, with possession punishable by as much as 10 years in jail, her counsel apparently hopes that exhibiting the courtroom this proof, supplied by the Arizona Well being Division, will assist assist her case.
Griner pleaded responsible to hashish possession final week, months after she was first arrested at an airport close to Moscow. She’s maintained that she didn’t intend to deliver the cartridges into Russia.
The case has captured worldwide consideration, and the White Home has been working to safe her launch, arguing that she’s “wrongfully detained,” even after admitting to the offense.
Russian officers have contested the U.S. characterization of the appropriateness of Griner’s detention, nonetheless, and a spokesperson for the International Ministry went as far as to level out that the U.S. place is considerably hypocritical on condition that individuals are nonetheless criminalized over hashish in each international locations. Advocates have argued that the U.S. could be higher positioned to advocate for her launch if marijuana was federally authorized or decriminalized.
On the state degree, nonetheless, each leisure and medical marijuana are authorized in Arizona, the place Griner is a professional affected person.
“The attending doctor gave Brittney suggestions for using medical hashish,” the athlete’s lawyer, Maria Blagovolina, stated, according to The Related Press. “The permission was issued on behalf of the Arizona Division of Well being.”
Legal professionals defending U.S. basketball participant Brittney Griner instructed a Russian courtroom that she was prescribed medical hashish within the U.S. for a persistent damage https://t.co/z3Zf41rybo pic.twitter.com/JVOGFsG2ju
— Reuters (@Reuters) July 15, 2022
Griner additionally not too long ago submitted to a drug take a look at, which didn’t flip up proof of any banned substances. The subsequent trial in her case is scheduled for July 26.
President Joe Biden not too long ago learn a handwritten letter from Griner that requested that the administration not neglect about her case or “the opposite American detainees” in Russia. “Please do all you possibly can to deliver us dwelling,” she wrote.
The president despatched a letter again and in addition known as Griner’s spouse this month to guarantee her that the U.S. was doing all that it might to safe the her launch. Nevertheless, these efforts have been difficult by the continuing worldwide rigidity over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
With respect to Griner’s “wrongfully detained” standing, there are a number of components that may lead the U.S. to categorise somebody as such, so it’s attainable that officers aren’t basing the designation on the query of innocence of guilt, per se. It may very well be the case that they consider Griner is being held for political causes or as leverage to barter a prisoner swap.
Russia has taken a very sturdy stance in opposition to reforming hashish coverage on the worldwide degree via the United Nations. And it condemned Canada for legalizing marijuana nationwide.
The deputy of Russia’s Ministry of International Affairs stated in March that legalization efforts within the U.S. and Canada are issues “of significant concern for us,” in line with a social media publish from the workplace’s official account. “It’s worrisome that a number of Member States of the [European Union] are contemplating violating their drug management obligations.”
Picture factor courtesy of Lorie Shaull/Wikimedia.