Pussy Riot member Maria Alyokhina denied parole

A letter from Paul McCartney was not enough to persuade the Russian court

Published May 23, 2013 6:11PM (EDT)

Maria Alyokhina, one of the two members of Russian punk activist group Pussy Riot still in prison, was denied parole on Thursday. Alyokhina declared a hunger strike after she was denied the right to attend her parole hearing in person, originally scheduled for Wednesday.

The court ruled in favor of the prosecution, who argued that the anti-Kremlin activist has "systematically disobeyed prison authorities and failed to repent for her crime" according to reports of Russian media.

The ruling from the Russian court comes despite a plea from Paul McCartney to release Alyokhina and fellow member Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, who was denied parole last month.


By Prachi Gupta

Prachi Gupta is an Assistant News Editor for Salon, focusing on pop culture. Follow her on Twitter at @prachigu or email her at pgupta@salon.com.

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Activism Maria Alyokhina Parole Paul Mccartney Pussy Riot Vladimir Putin