Brittney Griner’s appeal to her nine-year sentence on drug smuggling charges was rejected by a Russian court on Tuesday, October 25. While there are still options for Griner to explore before beginning her sentence, her lawyers had not considered whether they would try to take her case to either of Russia’s higher courts, according to The New York Times. Her lawyers said that they would “discuss” with the WNBA player the next steps in a statement to The Times. “We generally think that we must use all the available legal tools, especially given the harsh and unprecedented nature of her verdict,” they said. If her lawyers do not appeal the decision, Brittney, 32, will begin her nine-year sentence at a penal colony.
Brittney’s lawyers explained that they felt there were many issues with the verdict that would help clear a path to freedom for the basketball player. “The verdict contains numerous defects and we hoped that the court of appeal would take them into consideration,” they said in the statement.