Last week a letter writer criticized Brittney Griner for coming home instead of staying in Russia until Paul Whelan was also released (“Letter to the editor: Ex-Marine left behind in Russia as sacrifice to woke politics,” Dec. 23). Many on the right seem to imply that Whelan is more deserving, pointing out that he is a “former Marine.”

It would be easy for Brittney’s supporters to take the low road in her defense, pointing out what seem to be little-known facts about Whelan. He is a former Marine because he received a bad conduct discharge handed down by a special court-martial. He was found guilty of attempted larceny; three specifications of dereliction of duty; making a false official statement; wrongfully using another’s Social Security number, and 10 specifications of writing bad checks.

Curiously, since his discharge, Whelan has worked in security for private businesses. He visited Russia often. He was there for a wedding when he was arrested for having a flash drive given to him by a friend. He said he thought it was wedding pictures and the Russians said it was the names of Russian intelligence officers.

I wish him and his family well and hope for his release. However, it is wrong to cause further division in our country by criticizing any of the U.S. prisoners. They are American citizens – although Paul Whelan is also a citizen of three other countries – and they should come home. They don’t have to be perfect people.

Christine Carter
Falmouth

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