“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,” Griner wrote. “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.”
It is unclear if the hearing on Thursday will lead to a verdict or if the trial could drag into additional hearings. Griner admitted guilt in the last hearing but told the court that she had not intended to commit a crime, state news agency RIA Novosti reported.
During Thursday’s hearing, the court could force the defense to expand further on her intention, or they could move on to sentencing her, US officials said.
Griner’s lawyers expect the court to take into account the 31-year-old athlete’s guilty plea and hope for leniency, Alexander Boykov and Maria Blagovolina told journalists last week.
Samples taken from Griner did not show any traces of drugs, Boykov added. “She was clean, and she was tested,” the lawyer said.
Griner’s legal team said it was her decision to plead guilty, adding that she “sets an example of being brave.”
“She decided to take full responsibility for her actions as she knows that she is a role model for many people,” their statement read.
“Considering the nature of her case, the insignificant amount of the substance and BG’s personality and history of positive contributions to global and Russian sport, the defense hopes that the plea will be considered by the court as a mitigating factor and there will be no severe sentence.”
Her lawyers said they expect the trial to end around the beginning of the August.
CNN’s Kylie Atwood, Rosa Flores, Jacqueline Rose, Alexa Miranda, Abby Phillip, Dakin Andone and Alaa Elassar contributed to this report.
