The lawyers for US basketball player Brittney Griner, who is being held in Russia, have spread hope with regard to the impending sentence for the 31-year-old.
“We expect a rather mild verdict,” said lawyer Alexander Boykow on Tuesday.
Griner, who has to answer for violating national drug laws, could theoretically face up to ten years in prison. The two-time Olympic champion was arrested at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport in February after vape cartridges containing cannabis oil were found in her luggage. Griner pleaded guilty at the beginning of the trial.
According to Boykow, Griner will “probably” be interrogated again on Wednesday. The lawyer emphasized that his client only used cannabis “occasionally” to relieve pain, even in the United States. Boykow had previously described the cannabis oil found as a medically prescribed painkiller. In Russia, cannabis is also banned for medicinal purposes.