WNBA star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner holds up a photo of players from the recent all star game wearing her number, sitting in a cage at a court room prior to a hearing in the Khimki district court, just outside Moscow, Russia, Friday, July 15, 2022. Griner was arrested in February at the Russian capital's Sheremetyevo Airport when customs officials said they found vape canisters with cannabis oil in her luggage. She has been jailed since then, facing up to 10 years in prison if convicted. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
By JIM HEINTZ --
KHIMKI, Russia (AP) — A lawyer for WNBA star Brittney Griner at her drug possession trial in Russia on Friday gave the court a U.S. doctor’s letter recommending she use medical cannabis to treat pain.
Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and standout for the Phoenix Mercury, was arrested at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport in February after customs officials said they found vape canisters containing cannabis oil in her luggage. She faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted on charges of transporting drugs.
In court last week, Griner pleaded guilty and acknowledged possessing the canisters but said she had no criminal intent and said they were in her luggage because she packed hastily in her return to Russia to play for the UMMC Ekaterinburg basketball team duri
