Marc Fogel Act seeks transparency in wrongful detainment designations for Americans

A bipartisan group of Pennsylvania congressmen on Tuesday introduced the Marc Fogel Act, a bill named for an Oakmont teacher who was sentenced to 14 years in a Russian prison for possessing a small amount of medical marijuana.

The lawmakers said the legislation would require the State Department to be more transparent as it considers requests to designate Americans imprisoned overseas as wrongfully detained.

Fogel, 61, who taught history at Moscow’s Anglo American School, was taken into custody by Russian authorities in August 2021 after being found with medical marijuana prescribed to treat chronic pain from a spinal condition.

Fogel has not been designated as “wrongfully detained” by the U.S. State Department or the White House. His family says he has been moved to a hard-labor penal colony.

“Marc Fogel meets six of the 11 criteria established by the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act to be designated as wrongfully detained,” said U.S Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Peters, who is sponsoring the bill along with U.S. Reps. Mike Kelly, R-Butler; Chris Deluzio, D-Aspinwall; and Brendan Boyle, D-Philadelphia.

“Since last year, I have urged the State Department to classify (Fogel) as wrongfully detained and prioritize securing his release. The department has failed to do either and refused to explain its inaction — effectively stonewalling my efforts to bring him home,” Reschenthaler added. “The Marc Fogel Act will provide transparency into the State Department’s wrongful detainment determination process and help ensure that Americans imprisoned overseas are not forgotten.”

The legislation would require the State Department to provide Congress with copies of documents and communications on why a wrongful detainment determination has or has not been made within six months of a U.S. national’s arrest overseas.

“It is far past time for the U.S. State Department to designate Marc Fogel as wrongfully detained in Russia, and this bill will help bring daylight into the process that the department uses for cases like his and other Americans imprisoned overseas,” Deluzio said.

Fogel was detained at Sheremetyevo International Airport near Moscow as he returned to Russia to teach in his 10th and final year at the Anglo American School before retiring.

When Fogel and his wife, Jane, arrived at the airport, he possessed 17 grams of medical marijuana — just more than half an ounce — that he had been prescribed. He was charged with drug smuggling and drug possession and was held in custody pending trial.

Fogel, who taught internationally for 35 years, attended several hearings in Khimkinsky Moscow Region Court between April and June before pleading guilty to both counts against him.

Although he had cooperated and shown proof of his medical conditions, Fogel was ordered to serve 14 years in a maximum-security penal colony.

“This is not a time for partisanship. This is a time to come together, as Pennsylvanians and as Americans, to do everything we can to bring home Marc Fogel,” Boyle said. “I’m hopeful this legislation will lead to Marc being designated as ‘wrongfully detained’ so we can finally get Marc home.”

It’s not the only legislation prompted by Fogel’s situation. Earlier this month, the U.S. House unanimously passed a resolution in support of Fogel, as well as other U.S. citizens detained in Russia.

The resolution explicitly called for the release of Fogel and two other Americans: Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former Marine Paul Whelan. Those men have been designated “wrongfully detained” by the State Department.