As of Thursday, there are 46 American citizens wrongfully detained or held hostage abroad across 16 different countries, according to NPR. Butler County native Marc Fogel is one of those 46 people.

It took more than 1,220 days for the U.S. government to designate Fogel as wrongly detained, after he was arrested at Sheremetyevo Airport for carrying around a half-ounce of medical marijuana, which had been prescribed for chronic back pain.

More than three years to be designated as wrongfully detained is too long.

Through pretty much every public discussion the U.S. has had with Russia since Fogel’s detainment, Fogel’s family has advocated to the government on his behalf. Fogel’s mother, Malphine Fogel, and his sister, Anne Fogel, have been reaching out to U.S. officials and politicians to urge Fogel’s release. The Fogels and people close to them have been fighting for years to even get the U.S. to designate Marc Fogel as wrongfully detained.

Reuters reported Oct. 7 that at least 11 U.S. citizens are detained in Russia, even after the two nations completed their largest prisoner swap yet on Aug. 1. The trade brought 16 U.S. citizens back from detainments in Russia, in exchange for eight Russian prisoners who were being held in the U.S.

The White House and Congress are aware of Marc Fogel and the plight of his family. The Fogels in June filed a lawsuit against Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the Department of State for not having Marc Fogel designated as wrongfully detained.

Why was this the course of action the family had to take to get Marc Fogel, a man arrested for possessing a half-ounce of medical marijuana, designated as wrongfully detained in Russia? Other prisoners detained in Russia did not take this long. Several U.S. prisoners included in the October prisoner swap had been detained for a shorter period than Marc Fogel.

Marc Fogel has said he fears he will be left behind if the U.S. and Russia negotiate another prisoner swap. Maybe this new designation would keep this from happening, but let’s hope the next step in bringing Marc Fogel home doesn’t take as long as the first step in the process took. He can’t wait that long, and neither can his 95-year-old mother.

— ET