WNBA player Brittney Griner was detained in Russia for possession of drugs when she was initially there to play basketball, and after six months was sentenced to nine years in prison and a fine over 16,000 dollars on Thursday, Sep. 4th. 

Griner’s possibility of release would be a prisoner swap, an agreement between two countries to release prisoners. Countries involved in the swap decide to keep or exchange prisoners based on the case, and countries feel more pressure to swap when people feel prisoners are unjustifiably charged.  

With the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Griner could be considered a prisoner of war and released for her own safety. Her defense attorney plans to ask for a pardon from Vladimir Putin, and Maria Blagolovina, the head of Russian white-collar practice, said they would look into other possibilities for release.