Russian citizen Mariya Butina has accepted a plea deal in the American court, refusing the trial. She pleaded guilty to one of the charges. Her decision is actually quite understandable. For 6 months, she's been kept in conditions intended for dangerous criminals.
Our correspondent in the US Alexander Khristenko has learned what Butina has admitted to.
We're just back from the Washington Federal Court. Today... All filming or recording is prohibited there. So, everybody relies on their notes and what they saw in court. Like during all the previous trials, Mariya looked quite distressed today. At the same time, she gave concise answers to the judge's questions. She seemed to be determined to bring that case to a close. Today, the trial was dedicated to the legal arrangements over the deal with federal prosecutors which had been revealed the day before. Indeed, Mariya pleaded guilty to a single charge. And when asked if she was sincere in pleading guilty and nobody had induced her in doing so or any pressure had been put on her, of course, Mariya said that it was her decision, and nobody had induced her or put pressure on her.
But obviously, we are aware of the conditions she's been put in. Mariya was arrested in July. She's been mostly placed in solitary confinement, deprived of any contacts with people. She's allowed to go for a walk only at night, for only 2 hours, I believe. Naturally, in such conditions, it's mentally hard to hope for victory, to insist on pleading not guilty. By accepting the plea deal, Mariya refused any further trial, that is the possibility of being declared not guilty by a jury of 12 people.
Now, she can hope for a mitigated sentence. She'll face 5 years of prison at most instead of 15 years. We asked her lawyer Robert Driscoll to comment on how the trial is going.
- Mr. Driscoll, are you satisfied with the results of the hearing?
- Absolutely.
- Do you expect that the confinement conditions will be improved?
- We'll see.
- Are you still not allowed to comment on the case?
- No, I prefer not to do so.
Now, it entirely depends on the prosecution. It's hoped that the prosecution will recommend that the sentence should be mitigated, though, it's not guaranteed yet. Obviously, the prosecution gave some verbal guarantees. We'll follow the developments. Anyway, the longest term that Mariya can face now is 5 years.
The next hearing was set for Feb. 12. It will consider when she should be sentenced.
Alexander Khristenko, Nikolai Koskin for Vesti from Washington, the USA.
