10 things you need to know today: December 9, 2022

Brittney Griner freed in prisoner exchange with Russia, House approves same-sex marriage bill in bipartisan vote, and more

WNBA star Brittney Griner at a court hearing in Russia
(Image credit: KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP via Getty Images)

1. Russia releases Brittney Griner in exchange for Russian arms dealer

Russia released WNBA star Brittney Griner on Thursday in exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, President Biden announced. Griner was arrested by Russia in February for having vape cartridges with hashish oil in her luggage at a Moscow airport, and was sentenced to more than nine years. Bout, nicknamed the "Merchant of Death," is a former Soviet military officer who was serving a 25-year sentence in the United States for charges that included conspiring to kill Americans and providing material support to a terrorist organization. The U.S. had hoped to bring home Paul Whelan, another U.S. citizen the State Department says is being wrongfully detained in Russia, but Moscow refused to include him in the deal.

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Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.