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When the American basketball player, a US athlete playing in Indonesia, descended to the lobby of his residence earlier this year to collect a delivery with illegally imported cannabis gummies, he thought the medicine for relieving his chronic inflammatory condition had been delivered.

Indeed it did – however, so did a team of ten plainclothes officers. Footage circulating online depicts the athlete, dressed in a black T-shirt and shorts, shouting for help as multiple law enforcement agents move to apprehend him.

Facing Harsh Penalties

The Texan native, aged 35, is confronting the possibility of execution or a long spell behind bars. He was a key member of Prawira Bandung, which clinched the Indonesian Basketball League (IBL) in 2023, and he scored more than 1,000 points across three years in the country. But now he remains in pre-trial detention and faces a lifetime ban from the league.

“Cannabis serves as my treatment,” he stated over the phone from a prison near Jakarta, the capital. “I suffer from a chronic inflammation called Crohn’s that’s incurable. There’s no medicine apart from cannabis that stops my stomach from aching.”

When not playing, the athlete resides in Thailand, where the laws on cannabis are less restrictive. He mentions he previously suffered the pain of abstaining from cannabis in earlier seasons in Indonesia but explains how medical needs spurred him to bring in the intercepted supply of over a hundred edibles this year. “I made a stupid mistake,” he says.

Challenges in Law and Life

But that mistake should not warrant the death penalty or a long spell in prison, he contends. “There’s people telling me I could end up spending my entire future behind bars over some edibles,” he states. “This is unlike anything like this.” Initially, for weeks after his arrest, he was at “the lowest point in [my] life” and in a “deeply troubled state of mind.”

“I experienced isolation and despair,” he shares. “Waking up felt unbearable.” But through prayer and his faith, as well as access to a detention center gym, he is gradually recovering even while the tall sportsman shares a cramped cell with multiple inmates. “I just turned 35 but my energy remains high,” notes the former Utah State basketballer, with experience in Argentina, Japan, Turkey, Thailand and Tunisia. “I would love to continue playing professionally.”

Medical Use vs. Legal Perception

Shaw, who plays as a center or power forward, explains cannabis alleviates his mental health struggles, as well as insomnia and the pain from Crohn’s. “I don’t use it to have fun or social events,” he emphasizes. “With my stomach condition, sometimes it’s hard for me to keep food down or use the restroom. It merely eases the pain a little bit.”

Indonesia takes a hard line regarding narcotics and conducted executions in 2016, by firing squad, of several individuals convicted of drug offenses. Over five hundred individuals – including almost 100 foreigners – are on death row in the nation, primarily due to drug-related crimes.

Indonesian police stated that the athlete messaged to his teammates indicating he would share portions of the edibles among them. “What they consider drugs, I view as treatment,” says Shaw. “It’s just different cultures.”

Fundraising and Future Hopes

Following his detention, police officials told reporters that the American might receive a life sentence or possibly execution upon conviction. “Our ongoing investigation aims to the investigation to uncover the international drugs network involved and to stop its distribution,” a representative stated.

The athlete was presented during a media event, shown in handcuffs dressed in detention attire and a black face mask. He stood with his back to the audience as police chiefs exhibited the seized candies, which weigh 869 grams in total and valued at four hundred dollars.

He said that to charge him with possession of almost a kilo of cannabis is unfair and “sick,” since the bulk is made up by the candy material rather than the cannabis content. “I’ve been charged for almost a kilo,” he notes. “I didn’t have anything near that.”

Shaw is fundraising for mounting court costs. He has not yet appeared in court despite being arrested five months ago, and he awaits his initial court date. “It’s being portrayed as if I’m a major trafficker,” he says. “Why would I bring the candy here for sale? It was for personal use.”

Broader Context and Support

A representative from a group supporting individuals jailed over cannabis commented: “This situation is not an isolated incident. Globally, individuals face harsh penalties for non-violent cannabis offenses that pose no threat to society.” Even in the US, she added, tens of thousands remain incarcerated for cannabis offences even with legalization in numerous states and medical approval in all but two. “Such penalties run counter to global human rights norms,” she stated.

The potential efficacy of cannabis for Crohn’s lacks extensive research but recent papers have indicated that cannabis may relieve persistent pain without serious side effects. Amid this, public figures have highlighted potential advantages of cannabis-based medicines.

Similarities exist between Shaw’s case and that of Brittney Griner, the decorated American basketball player who was imprisoned in another country for nearly a year in 2022 after authorities found cannabis vape cartridges in her bags. Griner was eventually released as part of a prisoner swap involving a Russian weapons trafficker.

“Jarred has always been an exceptionally kind and caring individual you could meet,” a close associate said in a supportive statement. “Jarred made a mistake. But I don’t believe that mistake should cost him his entire future.”

The US embassy in the capital says they know about the situation but would not comment further.

An advocacy assistant handling Shaw’s case commented: “Cannabis itself is not lethal, but possessing it can. It’s crucial to draw significant focus to this situation in the hope that a positive resolution will set a powerful precedent. I’m dedicated to making sure he returns to his mother.”

• Local authorities offered no reply to a request for comment for this story.