Brittney Griner pleaded guilty and awaits verdict 2:08
(CNN) ––
Brittney Griner, an American basketball player detained in Russia, was found guilty Thursday of drug smuggling charges in her trial in a Moscow court.
The court noted that Griner deliberately committed the crime.
The expected verdict was known after a time of deliberation.
Prosecutors in the case asked for 9.5 years in prison for the athlete during closing arguments Thursday, Maria Blagovolina, Griner's attorney, said in a news release.
The CNN team also heard the prosecutor's demand in an audio broadcast of the trial.
Hours before the ruling was announced, a visibly emotional Brittney told the court that she wanted to apologize to her Russian team, her fans and her family for the mistake she made and the "embarrassment it caused them".
Griner insisted that he had no intention of breaking Russian law and that it was a mistake he made.
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"That is why I have pleaded guilty to my charges. I understand everything that has been said against me, the charges against me and that is why I have pleaded guilty. But I did not intend to violate any Russian law," he added.
In early July, Griner pleaded guilty to the charges in an attempt to mitigate his sentence, which could reach 10 years in prison.
His arrest and subsequent trial sparked international outrage, while the US State Department has called his detention unlawful.
In the midst of the athlete's trial in Russia, CNN reported exclusively on July 27 that the Joe Biden government offered Russia a prisoner swap that includes Griner and fellow American detainee Paul Whelan, in exchange for a drug trafficker. Russian weapons who pays a 25-year sentence in the US A proposal that, the basketball player's lawyers said at the time, took them by surprise.
The case against Brittney Griner in Russia
Griner was detained on February 17 at Sheremetyevo International Airport after authorities discovered less than a gram of cannabis oil in her luggage, according to Russian prosecutors.
Griner testified at his trial last week that no lawyer was present and that his rights were not explained to him, which Russian law says must happen within three hours.
Those rights would include the right to know what she was suspected of and the right to have access to a defense lawyer from the moment she was detained, including the possibility of a private meeting before the first interrogation by the authorities.
In addition, Griner said that she signed documents that were not clear to her and that she had to use Google translate on her phone to try to understand what was happening.
Brittney Griner writes a handwritten letter to Biden: "I am terrified that I could be here forever"
Griner's detention, search and arrest were "improper," Alexander Boykov, one of the basketball player's lawyers, said at one of the hearings.
In her testimony, the Olympic medalist noted that she was aware of Russia's drug laws and that the cannabis oil ended up in her luggage because she "packed under stress" in a hurry.
"I still don't understand to this day how she got into my bags," Griner said.
Griner: I know and respect the laws of Russia
Brittney Griner case: Joe Biden's solution 1:08
Griner "confirmed that he had a medical prescription for the use of medical cannabis", which "is quite a popular treatment among professional athletes. He emphasized that he never planned to bring it to Russia or use it," lawyer Maria Blagovolina explained to reporters after the audience.
A knee injury left her in a wheelchair for four months, Griner told the court, and she used the substance for swollen knee and ankle joints.
The athlete also insisted that she did not use it before tournaments to avoid possible disqualification.
"No, I would never risk that. I never wanted to affect my team," Griner said.
Previously, her lawyers pointed out that the basketball player underwent a drug test and the results came out clean.
Griner "explained to the court that he knows and respects the laws of Russia and never intended to violate them," Blagovolina said.
Griner also said in court that she enjoyed playing basketball in the country during the WNBA offseason and that her club, UMMC Ekaterinburg, became a second home to her, the attorney added.
The exchange proposal
In the midst of Griner's arrest and trial, several months of internal debate in the Biden administration culminated in a US offer in late July to trade Griner and Whelan -- whose prison sentence in Russia was denounced as unfair. by Washington -- by convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout, people with knowledge of the proposal told CNN.
The plan received the backing of President Joe Biden and overrides opposition from the Justice Department, which generally objects to prisoner swaps, according to the sources.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last week that Biden was "directly involved" and signed the proposal "presented in Moscow."
But he declined to provide further details or confirm that Bout is part of the proposal.
Blinken said that he also intends to speak with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in the coming days.
This would be his first conversation since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Griner's attorneys, Blagovolina and Boykov, learned about the potential exchange through news reports, they said.
Although they did not participate in those discussions, the two noted that they would be pleased with any productive outcome.
Chris Liakos, Travis Caldwell, Anna Chernova, Dakin Andone, Zahra Ullah, Abby Phillip, Kaitlan Collins, Evan Perez, Jennifer Hansler, Kylie Atwood, Michael Conte, Christian Sierra, DJ Judd, Shawna Mizelle, AnneClaire Stapleton and Brynn Wierbowski, all from CNN, contributed to this report.
Basketball playerBrittney GrinerMoscowNews from Russia
