Brittany Griner is continuing her fight against drug charges in Russian court despite pleading guilty.
The WNBA star center was arrested at Sheremetyevo Airport in February after officials said she had vape canisters that had cannabis oil in her luggage, The Associated Press reported.
The Olympic gold medalist admitted in court last week that she had the canisters but she didn’t have criminal intent to bring them into the country. Instead, she said she packed quickly to get to Russia to play for UMMC Ekaterinburg basketball during the WNBA offseason.
The canisters had 0.702 grams of cannabis oil, The Washington Post reported.
Griner’s attorney said in court on Friday that her client had a note from her Arizona doctor for the use of medical cannabis, according to the newspaper.
“The attending physician gave Brittney recommendations for the use of medical cannabis,” Maria Blagovolina said, according to the AP. “The permission was issued on behalf of the Arizona Department of Health.”
The recommendation was made for chronic pain and other conditions, The Washington Post reported.
Griner also had numerous tests that showed no prohibited substances in her system, her attorney said.
Griner is expected to be back in court on July 26.
She faces up to 10 years in prison, the AP reported.
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