Biden and Harris speak with Cherelle Griner, wife of detained WNBA star Brittney Griner

Washington — President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris spoke Wednesday with Cherelle Griner, the wife of WNBA basketball star Brittney Griner, who remains behind bars in Russia, the White House said. 

Griner has been imprisoned in Russia since February, and her trial began last week. The Biden administration has been under increasing pressure to do more to secure her release.

The call comes two days after a handwritten letter by the 31-year-old Griner to Mr. Biden was delivered to the White House, according to her family, in which she implored the president to bring her home. "I'm terrified I might be here forever," the Phoenix Mercury player wrote.