American basketball player Brittney Griner was been sentenced on Thursday to nine years in Russian prison after being found guilty of possessing cannabis vape cartridges.<\/p>\n
The case has captured international attention, placed pressure on the White House to secure her release and prompted calls from advocates and lawmakers to reform U.S. marijuana laws that similarly criminalize people over cannabis.<\/p>\n
In a statement on Thursday, President Joe Biden said that Griner\u2019s sentencing \u201cis one more reminder of what the world already knew: Russia is wrongfully detaining Brittney.\u201d The State Department classified Griner as a \u201cwrongfully detained\u201d person<\/a> and maintained that designation even after she pleaded guilty to the cannabis possession charge<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s unacceptable, and I call on Russia to release her immediately so she can be with her wife, loved ones, friends, and teammates,\u201d Biden said<\/a>. \u201cMy administration will continue to work tirelessly and pursue every possible avenue to bring Brittney and Paul Whelan [who is serving a 16-year sentence over alleged espionage in Russia] home safely as soon as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n Statement by President Joe Biden on the Sentencing of Wrongfully Detained American Brittney Griner: https:\/\/t.co\/LaGPbGwNFU<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Karine Jean-Pierre (@PressSec) August 4, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n While a majority of states have legalized marijuana in some form, including Arizona where Griner is a registered medical cannabis patient<\/a>, federal law still strictly prohibits marijuana. A first offense for possession of any amount of cannabis under federal criminal code is punishable by up to one year in prison, with sentences increasing for subsequence offenses.<\/p>\n But while U.S. law might not be as severe, or enforced as consistently, advocates argue that Griner\u2019s case demonstrates the urgent need for federal marijuana reform, even if it might not directly affect the athlete\u2019s overseas case. Russian officials have been unwilling to accept a prisoner swap that U.S. officials have reportedly floated, which would involve releasing Griner in exchange for a convicted Russian arms dealer.<\/p>\n \u201cToday\u2019s sentencing of Griner underscores the need for domestic cannabis reform,\u201d Martiza Perez, director of the office of federal affairs at the Drug Policy Alliance, told Marijuana Moment. \u201cThe U.S. is responsible for exporting the drug war across the globe. It still arrests, incarcerates, and deports people for low-level cannabis arrests and convictions.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis makes it incredibly challenging to protect U.S. citizens abroad. We cannot stand on a moral or legal high ground because we don\u2019t have it,\u201d Perez said. \u201cThe US must end marijuana prohibition and remedy the harms of mass cannabis criminalization.\u201d<\/p>\n Russian officials have strongly contested the U.S. characterization of the appropriateness of Griner\u2019s prosecution. A spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry went so far as to point out that the U.S. position is somewhat hypocritical given that people are still criminalized over cannabis in both countries.<\/p>\n At her sentencing hearing, Griner pleaded with the judge not to \u201cend her life\u201d over the cannabis offense, saying she \u201cmade an honest mistake,\u201d according<\/a> to Reuters.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a sad state of affairs that Brittney Griner is a political pawn to one of the few countries that criminalize cannabis more heavily than the United States,\u201d Justin Strekal, founder of the BOWL PAC, told Marijuana Moment. \u201cAs President Biden continues to declare Griner wrongfully detained, he should take steps to uncouple the fact both the U.S. and Russia incarcerate Americans for cannabis possession.\u201d<\/p>\n Steven Hawkins, CEO of the U.S. Cannabis Council, called Griner a \u201cpolitical prisoner\u201d and saying he sentence is \u201can outrage.\u201d<\/p>\n But he also told Marijuana Moment that is should be a \u201cwakeup call for Americans.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHer trial and sentence in Russia may seem like an outlier at a time of sweeping acceptance and legalization, but it isn\u2019t. Cannabis remains illegal and possession is harshly punished around the world. The US is no exception,\u201d he said, pointing to a recent Mississippi Supreme Court ruling upholding a life sentence for a cannabis possession charge.<\/p>\n \u201cThousands of Americans are in prison at this moment for cannabis charges,\u201d Hawkins said. \u201cWe call on President Biden to get Griner home safely and clean up our own affairs by granting a blanket pardon for cannabis offenses and encouraging state and local expungement efforts.\u201d<\/p>\n While Biden has taken no meaningful steps to decriminalize marijuana or broadly free cannabis prisoners as he promised on the campaign trail, he did make his first public comment on marijuana policy since taking office<\/a> last month, reiterating that he doesn\u2019t believe people should be incarcerated over the plant.<\/p>\n But even with the executive authority to grant mass pardons to people with federal cannabis convictions, the administration is still in the process of exploring its clemency options<\/a>, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said last week.<\/p>\n \u201cA sentence of nine years for possession of a minuscule amount of cannabis product\u2014clearly without \u2018criminal intent\u2019\u2014is a travesty, but not especially surprising,\u201d NORML Political Director Morgan Fox told Marijuana Moment. \u201cBrittney Griner is obviously being used as a political pawn, and as such has become yet another victim of the global war on cannabis consumers which has been largely perpetuated by her home country.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe chickens of prohibition are coming home to roost, and people like Brittney Griner are paying the price.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Nina Turner, a former Ohio state lawmakers and congressional candidate, said that Biden must do all that he can to secure Griner\u2019s release in light of the harsh sentencing, and he must also \u201ccorrect that injustice here in America, too.\u201d<\/p>\n Brittney Griner being sentenced to 9 years in jail over cannabis is egregious.@POTUS<\/a> must do everything in his power to get her back to the US.<\/p>\n He also must correct that injustice here in America, too. Far too many people are locked up over non-violent drug offenses.<\/p>\n \u2014 Nina Turner (@ninaturner) August 4, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n \u201cFar too many people are locked up over non-violent drug offenses,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Derek Kitchen, a Democratic state senator in Utah said that \u201cmarijuana propaganda and disinformation has led to inappropriate criminalization of natural medicine around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n Absolutely awful. Marijuana propaganda and disinformation has led to inappropriate criminalization of natural medicine around the world. Now #britneygriner<\/a> is paying the price behind bars in Russia. She deserves to come home. https:\/\/t.co\/51Ph4zVY4k<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Senator Derek Kitchen (@derekkitchen) August 4, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n \u201cNow [Griner] is paying the price behind bars in Russia,\u201d he said. \u201cShe deserves to come home.\u201d<\/p>\n While Biden only mentioned Griner and Whelan by name in Thursday\u2019s statement, a senior administration official also recently said that they are actively looking into another case<\/a> of a U.S. citizen, Mark Fogel, who is being held in Russia over a marijuana-related offense to see if the administration can secure his release.<\/p>\n Fogel has not been designated as a \u201cwrongfully detained\u201d person at this point, however. That classification generally escalates diplomatic engagement to secure a U.S. citizen\u2019s release.<\/p>\n There are several factors that can lead the U.S. to classify someone as such, so it\u2019s possible that officials haven\u2019t based the Griner designation on the question of innocence of guilt, per se. It could be the case that they believe she is being held for political reasons as Russia faces international condemnation over its invasion of Ukraine.<\/p>\n Russia has taken a particularly strong stance\u00a0against reforming cannabis policy at the international level<\/a>\u00a0through the United Nations. And it\u00a0condemned<\/a>\u00a0Canada for legalizing marijuana nationwide.<\/p>\n The deputy of Russia\u2019s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in March that legalization efforts in the U.S. and Canada are matters \u201cof serious concern for us,\u201d according to a social media post from the office\u2019s official account. \u201cIt is worrisome that several Member States of the [European Union] are considering violating their drug control obligations.\u201d<\/p>\n Booker Says There\u2019s Republican Support For \u2018SAFE Banking Plus\u2019 Marijuana Compromise<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n Image element courtesy of Lorie Shaull\/Wikimedia<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n The post Advocates Demand Biden Take Marijuana Action After Brittney Griner Sentenced To Nine Years In Russian Prison For Vapes<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
American basketball player Brittney Griner was been sentenced on Thursday to nine years in Russian prison after being found guilty of possessing cannabis vape cartridges. The case has captured international attention, placed pressure on the White House to secure her release and prompted calls from advocates and lawmakers to reformContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56341"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56341"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56341\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":56342,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56341\/revisions\/56342"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56341"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56341"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56341"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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\nRead More: Advocates Demand Biden Take Marijuana Action After Brittney Griner Sentenced To Nine Years In Russian Prison For Vapes<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"