1. United States
2. Ariz.
3. Letter

Marc Fogel, a 61-year-old history teacher from Pennsylvania, has been unjustly detained in Russia since August 2021 on dubious drug charges related to medical marijuana. He was sentenced to 14 years in a brutal Russian penal colony, despite his frail health and lack of criminal history. This draconian punishment is a clear abuse by the authoritarian Russian regime seeking political bargaining chips. As an educator who spent decades teaching the children of diplomats, Mr. Fogel does not deserve to languish in inhumane conditions. The U.S. government must make his release an urgent priority through all available diplomatic channels, including potential prisoner swaps if necessary. Every day that passes compounds the injustice against this law-abiding American citizen. We call on the administration to designate Mr. Fogel as wrongfully detained and do everything in its power to bring him home to his family.