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Public Defender Says Butina Asks US Court for Voluntary Dismissal of Appeal

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - Russian national Maria Butina who had served a prison term in the United States asked a US court for voluntary dismissal of the appeal, her public defender A.J. Kramer said in a court filing.
Sputnik
"Appellant, Mariia Butina, requests that this Court enter a voluntary dismissal of the appeal in the above case", Kramer said on Wednesday. "After being informed of the circumstances of her case and of the consequences of dismissal of her appeal, the appellant has decided that it would be in her best interests to dismiss her appeal at this time".

She was deported to Russia on 25 October after her sentence was slightly reduced for good behavior.

Public Defender Says Butina Asks US Court for Voluntary Dismissal of Appeal

The Russian Foreign Ministry has called Butina's sentence a disgrace of the US judicial system and accused the court of carrying out a political order. US authorities even forced Butina to spend a significant part of her sentence in solitary confinement.

Previously, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Butina’s indictment was unjustified because she was not tasked to perform any mission on behalf of the Russian government.

Butina was arrested by US authorities in July 2018 and sentenced to 18 months in prison for "conspiring to work for a foreign government".

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