Meek Mill’s Arresting Officer Listed Among Philadelphia DA’s Corrupt Cops
The saga of Meek Mill's arrest continues. Today (March 6) it was revealed that the Philadelphia police officer who arrested Meek in 2007, a case that he's currently incarcerated for again after disobeying parole violations, has a history of corruption and was once investigated by federal authorities.
The Philadelphia Inquirer has been pursuing a "secret list" of police officers that the District Attorney's office actively keeps off the witness stand due incidences of "lying, racial bias, or brutality." That list was released to the public today, and includes none other than Officer Reginald Graham, who was a key player in the arrest and conviction of Meek in 2007 for gun and drug charges. He was the sole witness to testify against Meek at his 2008 trial.
At the time, Meek Mill was 21, and was sentenced to 10 years probation for his crimes. In November, nearly 10 years after his conviction, Meek was found to have violated the terms of his probation and sentenced to four years in prison.
The harsh sentence drew wide criticism from the hip-hop community and beyond, and many artists such as Drake, Beyonce and Jay-Z have rallied for his freedom in the months since he's been in jail.
The "corrupt" list includes 28 other police officers with reported incidents from lying on the stand to aiding in a prostitution ring.
Officer Graham was investigated by federal authorities in 2013 for an undisclosed reason that is simply listed as "multiple incidences of corruption." He never faced any penalties because he retired before his hearing took place.
This is good news for Meek and his lawyers, who filed a Post-Conviction Relief Act petition a few weeks back. If they are granted the PCRA, it would throw out Meek's former conviction and make him eligible for a retrial. The documents submitted by Meek's lawyers alleged that Graham often stole money that was found during searches and arrests, beat up suspects and admitted at one point to another police officer that he beat up Meek in 2007 or 2008.
The act sparked similar motions from other inmates that feel they were wrongfully convicted by corrupt Philly cops.
Meek Mill's lawyer Joe Tacopina told XXL, “The release of the so-called 'Do Not Testify' list—which includes Meek’s arresting officer, Reginald Graham —supports everything in the motions filed by Meek and others wrongfully arrested by Officer Graham for post-conviction relief. We are hopeful that this is the final step in the process to get Meek and the other defendants released on bail and to have their convictions overturned.”
Given this new information, and that a second former Philly police officer has previously said on record that Graham lied about the circumstances surrounding Meek's arrest, hopefully this should be enough for Meek Mill to get another shot at justice.
See Photos of Meek Mill's Different Looks Over the Years