![]() Brittney Griner is not the only American being detained in Russa over cannabis, and some senators have stepped up to remind the government of that, and ask for help. Democratic Senator from Pennsylvania, Bob Casey, led a group of nine senators, in a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, regarding American Marc Fogel’s detainment in Russia. The senators said that like Brittney Griner, Marc Fogel should also be classified as “wrongfully detained,” because he holds a valid Pennsylvania medical cannabis license. The letter wrote, “Mr. Fogel’s recent 14-year sentence to a maximum-security penal colony for possession of less than an ounce of medical marijuana can only be understood as a political ploy by Vladimir Putin’s authoritarian regime … Mr. Fogel, a 61-year-old with severe medical conditions, has already been detained for a year. The United States cannot stand by as Mr. Fogel wastes away in a Russian hard labor camp.” The letter pointed out that because the US Government is actively working to negotiate the release of Brittney Griner over a similar offense, that Fogel’s case “warrants the same degree of political attention and diplomatic intervention.” They wrote, “We strongly urge the State Department to shift its strategy given the realities of Marc Fogel’s situation and act immediately to designate him as ‘wrongfully detained.’ Such a designation will provide the warranted level of support to Marc Fogel’s family after a year of communication with Mr. Fogel only via mail and, most importantly, will require the U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs to secure Mr. Fogel’s freedom. We cannot allow Mr. Fogel to be used as a political pawn by Vladimir Putin.” They explained why they believe Fogel’s sentence is a “political ploy,” saying, “Though Mr. Fogel did violate Russian law by bringing 17 grams of marijuana to the country, his sentence is grossly disproportionate to similar cases … As Russian lawyers have pointed out, the most common sentence in similar cases is five years of probation.” A few weeks ago, a group of senators and congressmen from Fogel’s home state of Pennsylvania also wrote a letter to the Secretary of State urging that Fogel be included in negotiations for Brittney Griner’s release. They pointed out the similarities in their cases, and yet the difference in help and attention being received. They wrote that while Griner’s family received a Presidential attention, “the family of Mr. Fogel has struggled to even receive a response from the State Department.” At a press briefing last month, a reporter asked Fogel’s case is being handled differently than Griner’s. The response was that they would not speak on specifics of on-going cases, but added that they have been working on it. They said, “it’s ongoing and active; we’re looking at it. But [we’d] rather not go into any more details on specific cases.” Comments are closed.
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