MOSCOW, April 27 (UPI) -- A Russian judge rejected parole for Pussy Riot member Nadezhda Tolokonnikova after prison authorities argued she broke penal colony rules.
The defense, who said they would appeal the ruling, told the judge in the republic of Mordovia Tolokonnikova should be released because she has a small child, has had no conflicts with other inmates and would be quickly employed upon release.
"Analysis of the convict's conduct showed that she had not always observed the rules of conduct. She has two disciplinary penalties not yet removed from official records," the judge's ruling said Friday.
Tolokonnikova, 23, and another Pussy Riot member, Maria Alyokhina, 24, were each sentenced to two years in prison for "hooliganism motivated by religious hatred" for performing an anti-Kremlin "punk prayer" at Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral in February 2012.
