In June 2018, Meek Mill‘s appeal for a new trial was denied by Judge Genece E. Brinkley. Now, the “Amen” rapper might receive a legal break with this latest news. Philadelphia’s District Attorney Larry Krasner filed a document that advocates for Mill’s re-trial with a new judge, stating that Judge Brinkley “abused” discretion ahead of Mill’s 2-4 year prison sentence, TMZ reports.
Within the filing, the D.A.’s office outlines several instances where Judge Brinkley seemingly acted on duties outside of her job requirements. One occurrence was the judge’s visit to a homeless shelter where Mill was carrying out community service.
“Here, instead of asking a probation officer to visit the shelter to assess Williams’ compliance with the court’s community service requirement, Judge Brinkley personally assumed the role of investigator,” the passage reads. “No evidence suggests that the judge routinely made this type of unannounced personal visit to monitor her other probationers.”
Jordan Siev, Mill’s lawyer, expressed the team’s elation in this breakthrough. “We are very pleased that the Philadelphia District Attorney’s office has confirmed to the Superior Court that Meek is entitled to have his conviction vacated,” Siev said. “The brief is also significant in that it marks the first time the DA has publicly outlined in writing that it supports Judge Brinkley’s recusal based on her ‘appearance of partiality’ and ‘public perception of unfairness and bias.’”
In November 2017, Mill was sentenced to two to four years in prison for probation violation. The 32-year-old artist has been on parole for over 10 years.
