Lawyers appeal pretrial extension for jailed WSJ reporter Gershkovich

Evan Gershkovich

Lawyers for jailed Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich have appealed a Moscow court’s decision to extend his pretrial detention until Nov. 30, reports Ann Simmons of The Journal.

Simmons writes, “Gershkovich’s appeal was lodged at the Lefortovo District Court in Moscow on Friday, according to the court. The appeal is to be heard at the Moscow City Court.

“Gershkovich’s lawyers couldn’t be reached for comment. Previously, Gershkovich’s lawyers have asked the court to grant him bail or allow him to await trial under house arrest. Their requests have been repeatedly denied.

“Gershkovich is the first American journalist arrested on espionage charges in Russia since the end of the Cold War. The State Department has deemed him wrongfully detained, unlocking a broad U.S. government effort to exert pressure on Russia to free him.”

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Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.