After six tension-filled months, President Biden finally reached out to speak with Brittney Griner’s wife, Cherelle, to assure her that the administration is making the WNBA star’s release a top priority.
“The President called Cherelle to reassure her that he is working to secure Brittney’s release as soon as possible, as well as the release of Paul Whelan and other U.S. nationals who are wrongfully detained or held hostage in Russia and around the world,” the White House said in a statement that was obtained by USA Today. “He also read her a draft of the letter the President is sending to Brittney Griner today.”
Furthermore, 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 statement reads.
Biden’s reassurance and phone call to Cherelle Griner comes a day after Griner wrote an open letter to Biden that was published on Tuesday.
″As 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 penned, according to media reports. “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.”
Griner’s fame is worldwide after winning a national championship at Baylor University, two U.S. Olympic gold medals, and a WNBA title with the Phoenix Mercury. The seven-time WNBA All-Star has been languishing in a Russian jail since Feb. 17, 2022, when a canine unit at the airport near the capital city of Moscow allegedly detected hashish oil in the vape cartridges packed inside her luggage.
As rolling out reported previously, fewer than 1 percent of Russian defendants win acquittals. Grineer faces up to 10 years in prison if she is convicted.
