Russia Finally Gives US Access to Brittney Griner

An American official has now laid eyes on WNBA champ Brittney Griner in Russia, and she's reportedly "in good condition." TMZ reports State Department rep Ned Price on Wednesday told CNN that the US has been granted consular access to Griner by Russia, and that a US Embassy official managed to see her "within the past couple hours." "There's only so much I can say," Price continued, "but what I can say is that our official found Brittney Griner to be in good condition. And we will continue to do everything we can to see to it that she is treated fairly throughout this ordeal. ... That is a message that we will continue to convey in no uncertain terms to the Russian Federation."

The AP notes the State Department had on Friday stepped up its demands to be given consular access to the 31-year-old, who has been detained since mid-February on allegations that she brought vape cartridges containing hash oil into the country. Fox News cites the opinion of Peter Maggs, an expert on Russian law with the University of Illinois College of Law, who says on the harsher end of things, Griner could face as many as 10 years in a labor camp. "One thing I find a little worrisome is this extension of her preliminary holding from two months to three months, because you have to go to a higher authority to get it lengthened," he notes. (More Brittney Griner stories.)