{"id":1360480,"date":"2022-03-06T07:30:13","date_gmt":"2022-03-06T12:30:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1360480"},"modified":"2022-03-06T07:38:07","modified_gmt":"2022-03-06T12:38:07","slug":"rep-sheila-jackson-lee-demands-russia-release-wnba-player-brittney-griner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rep-sheila-jackson-lee-demands-russia-release-wnba-player-brittney-griner\/","title":{"rendered":"Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee Demands Russia Release WNBA Player Brittney Griner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Frep-sheila-jackson-lee-demands-russia-release-wnba-player-brittney-griner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1360480&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div id=\"speechkit-wrapper\" class=\"speechkit-wrapper\">\n<p><span class=\"label-bg\">NEW<\/span>You can now listen to Fox News articles!\n  <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"speakable\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/category\/us\/us-regions\/southwest\/texas\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Texas<\/a> Democratic Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee is demanding the release of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/category\/sports\/wnba\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WNBA<\/a> star Brittney Griner who was detained by authorities in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/category\/world\/world-regions\/russia\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Russia<\/a> for allegedly possessing a vape with cannabis oil.<\/p>\n<p class=\"speakable\">&#8220;We know that there were some issues dealing with vape cartridges and other items but let me be very clear,&#8221; Lee, who represents Griner\u2019s hometown of Houston, Texas, in Congress, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=AXo_fvpG3vA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><u>said<\/u><\/a> on Saturday. &#8220;Brittney Griner is a United States citizen, she was a guest in Russia\u2026and I will be demanding her release.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"image-ct inline\">\n<div class=\"m\"><source media=\"(max-width: 767px)\" \/><source media=\"(min-width: 767px)\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/640\/320\/GettyImages-1345616011.jpg?ve=1&#038;tl=1\" alt=\"Brittney Griner #42 of the Phoenix Mercury during the first half in Game Four of the 2021 WNBA semifinals\u00a0\" \/><\/div>\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<p>\n      Brittney Griner #42 of the Phoenix Mercury during the first half in Game Four of the 2021 WNBA semifinals\u00a0<br \/>\n      <span class=\"copyright\">(Photo by Christian Petersen\/Getty Images)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/sports\/american-basketball-brittney-griner-detained-russia-drug-charges-10-years-prison\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong><u>AMERICAN BASKETBALL STAR BRITTNEY GRINER DETAINED IN RUSSIA ON DRUG CHARGES, FACES UP TO 10 YEARS IN PRISON<\/u><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Lee added that she has spoken with the State Department to &#8220;try and get them to focus on her circumstances.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I don\u2019t want to disregard a sovereign nation but Putin has disregarded sovereign nations his entire service in this world,&#8221; Lee said. &#8220;Anyone that is killing and attacking and destroying Ukraine, a neighboring country that is not bothering them, has no right to hold Ms. Griner. Period.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"image-ct inline\">\n<div class=\"m\"><source media=\"(max-width: 767px)\" \/><source media=\"(min-width: 767px)\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/640\/320\/Sheila-Jackson-Lee-THUMB.jpg?ve=1&#038;tl=1\" alt=\"U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas (AP Photo\/J. Scott Applewhite, File)\" \/><\/div>\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<p>\n      U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas (AP Photo\/J. Scott Applewhite, File)\n      <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Lee called for any alleged infraction to be dealt with &#8220;diplomatically&#8221; and referenced Griner\u2019s &#8220;storied history of Olympic gold medals&#8221; and said that a Moscow prison is &#8220;no place for her&#8221; especially when considering the fact that Putin has reportedly thrown thousands of Ukraine war protesters into jail.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/live-news\/zelenskyy-video-cheered-at-pro-ukraine-rallies-across-europe-live-updates\"><strong><u>UKRAINE HUMANITARIAN CEASEFIRE WITH RUSSIA NOT HOLDING: LIVE UPDATES<\/u><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Russian state media announced on Saturday that Griner, a member of the WNBA\u2019s Phoenix Mercury, had been arrested last month after allegedly being caught with a vape cartridge that contained hash oil.<\/p>\n<p>The Russian Federal Customs Service released a video of the incident that appeared to show Griner going through security at Sheremetyevo International Airport near Moscow.<\/p>\n<p>According to Russian authorities, Griner could face anywhere between 5-10 years if found guilty.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/apps-products\"><strong><u>CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP<\/u><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Griner was in Russia playing for the women\u2019s basketball team UMMC Ekaterinburg during the WNBA\u2019s offseason. Playing overseas during the WNBA\u2019s offseason is common among WNBA players who have the opportunity to earn lucrative contracts that oftentimes exceed what they earn in the United States.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"image-ct inline\">\n<div class=\"m\"><source media=\"(max-width: 767px)\" \/><source media=\"(min-width: 767px)\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/640\/320\/putin1.png?ve=1&#038;tl=1\" alt=\"Russian President Vladimir Putin \u00a0(Yuri Kochetkov\/Pool Photo via AP)\" \/><\/div>\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<p>\n      Russian President Vladimir Putin \u00a0(Yuri Kochetkov\/Pool Photo via AP)<br \/>\n      <span class=\"copyright\">(Yuri Kochetkov\/Pool Photo via AP)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Griner\u2019s agent told <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/wnba\/story\/_\/id\/33429212\/basketball-player-brittney-griner-reportedly-detained-russia-wnba-representatives-working-get-home\"><u>ESPN<\/u><\/a> in a statement on Saturday that it was an &#8220;ongoing legal matter&#8221; and they are in talks with the WNBA and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/category\/sports\/nba\"><u>NBA<\/u><\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We are aware of the situation with Brittney Griner in Russia and are in close contact with her, her legal representation in Russia, her family, her teams, and the WNBA and NBA,&#8221; the statement from the agent read. &#8220;As this is an ongoing legal matter, we are not able to comment further on the specifics of her case but can confirm that as we work to get her home, her mental and physical health remain our primary concern.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Texas Democratic Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee is demanding the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner who was detained by authorities in Russia<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1360480","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1360480","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1360480"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1360480\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1360480"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1360480"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1360480"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}