WNBA star Brittney Griner learned her fate Thursday as a Russian court found her guilty of drug smuggling with criminal intent. The judge sentenced Griner to nine years in a Russian penal colony.

Griner was arrested Feb. 17 at the Sheremetyevo International Airport after Russian authorities found THC vape cartridges in Griner’s luggage. She was returning to the country to play on a Russian team she plays with during the WNBA off season. At the direction of her attorneys, she admitted to having the cartridges. She said she accidentally packed them in her bag when she left Arizona, where medical marijuana is legal.

During closing arguments, Griner apologized to her family and her team and repeated that she never intended to break the law.

Going into the trial, it was expected that Griner would likely be found guilty and could be facing 10 years in prison. Fewer than 1% of defendants in Russian criminal cases are acquitted, and in Russia, acquittals can be overturned.

The basketball star plays center for the Phoenix Mercury and is a two-time U.S. Olympic gold medalist. Her wife, Cherelle, called Griner a “political pawn” and has lobbied President Joe Biden for Griner’s release. She told “CBS Mornings” that she was initially told by the Biden administration it was best for her to stay quiet and let the State Department handle negotiations behind the scenes.

“I did that, and respectfully we’re over 140 days [of Brittney Griner’s detention] at this point,” Cherelle Griner said. “[Staying quiet] does not work. And so I will not be quiet anymore. I will find that balance of harm verse help in pushing our government to do everything that’s possible.”

Brittney Griner, too, pressed the president to intervene. She wrote a letter to President Joe Biden from a Russian prison, pleading with him to not forget about her and other American detainees.

“As I sit here in a Russian prison, alone with my thoughts and without the protection of my wife, family, friends, Olympic jersey, or any accomplishments, I’m terrified I might be here forever,” she wrote.

The U.S. State Department reclassified Griner as “wrongfully detained” after Griner’s situation gained international attention. President Biden also signed an executive order July 19 to punish people who wrongfully detain Americans abroad. The order allows the administration to apply sanctions on people believed to be involved in the wrongful detention of Americans. The order could apply to government officials or to criminals and terrorists who aren’t affiliated with any government.

There have also been on-again-off-again talk about a possible prisoner swap. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken admitted in late July that the administration had offered Russia a prisoner swap Griner as well as another jailed American, Paul Whelan. The U.S. government proposed trading convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout in return. Bout, known as the “Merchant of Death,” is one of the world’s most prolific arms dealers.

No deal has been accepted by Russia thus far, and when asked about the U.S. offer, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov replied that prisoner swaps “were typically negotiated discreetly behind the scenes.”