President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris spoke Wednesday with the wife of Brittney Griner, the WNBA star imprisoned in Russia on drug smuggling charges.
During the phone call, the president offered support and read Cherelle Griner a draft of the letter he is sending the Phoenix Mercury center. Griner sent a letter to the White House from jail on Monday, asking for more help in gaining freedom for herself and other wrongfully detained Americans around the world.
“(A)s I sit here in a Russian prison, alone with my thoughts and without the protection of my wife, family, friends, Olympic jersey, or any accomplishments, I’m terrified I might be here forever,” Griner wrote to Biden.
“I realize you are dealing with so much, but please don’t forget about me and the other American Detainees. Please do all you can to bring us home. I voted for the first time in 2020 and I voted for you. I believe in you. I still have so much good to do with my freedom that you can help restore. I miss my wife! I miss my family! I miss my teammates! It kills me to know they are suffering so much right now. I am grateful for whatever you can do at this moment to get me home,” she wrote.
In response, the administration said it would use every tool at its disposal to help.
“The president offered his support to Cherelle and Brittney’s family, and he committed to ensuring they are provided with all possible assistance while his administration pursues every avenue to bring Brittney home,” the White House said.
Griner, a 31-year-old Olympic gold medalist, was arrested in Feb. 17 after vape cartridges with an oil substance derived from marijuana were found in her luggage at an airport outside Moscow.
She faces up to a decade in Russian prison and her trial is currently underway.
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