Moscow detention of WNBA star Griner extended a month
WNBA star Brittney Griner had her pre-trial detention in Russia extended by one month Friday, her lawyer said.
Alexander Boykov told The Associated Press he thinks the relatively short extension indicated that Griner’s case would go to trial soon. The 31-year-old American basketball player has been in custody for nearly three months.
Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist who plays for the Phoenix Mercury, was detained at a Moscow airport in February after vape cartridges containing oil derived from cannabis were allegedly found in her luggage. She faces drug smuggling charges that carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
Griner appeared for the brief hearing at a court outside Moscow handcuffed, wearing an orange hoodie and holding her face down. She did not express “any complaints about the detention conditions,” Boykov said.
The Biden administration says Griner is being wrongfully detained. The WNBA and U.S. officials have worked toward her release, without visible progress.
“Today’s news on Brittney Griner was not unexpected, and the WNBA continues to work with the U.S. government to get BG home safely ---and as soon as possible,” the basketball league said in a statement.
State Dept spokesman Ned Price said diplomats from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow spoke with Griner on Friday and reported she “is doing as well as can be expected in these circumstances.”
Russian officials have described Griner’s case as a criminal offense without making any political associations. But Moscow’s war in Ukraine has brought U.S.-Russia relations to the lowest level since the Cold War.
BAUER APPEAL STARTS MAY 23
Trevor Bauer’s arbitration appeal of his unprecedented two-year suspension under Major League Baseball’s domestic violence policy has been scheduled to start May 23, a person familiar with the hearing told The Associated Press.
The appeal will be heard by a three-person panel chaired by independent arbitrator Martin Scheinman. It will include one representative each from MLB and the players’ association.
Bauer was suspended by Commissioner Rob Manfred on April 29, a penalty that if unchanged will cost the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher just over $60 million of his $102 million, three-year contract. Bauer immediately said he would challenge it.