Rapper Meek Mill could be headed for a new trial, according to the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office. “Due to questions about the credibility of [Mill’s] arresting officer,” Philly.com reports that Mill’s controversial conviction on drug and weapons charges should be vacated. That would set the stage for a new trial for Mill. The DA’s office made the statement that Mill should get a new trial during a status hearing on Mill’s case.
If the present case against Mill is vacated, as the DA’s office is recommending, there is no guarantee that prosecutors would pursue a new trial against Mill. So the rapper could be close to freedom. Mill, 30, has been in prison since November for a parole violation, on charges that stem from 2008.
Mill’s case has drawn plenty of media attention and the advocacy of multiple celebrities on Mill’s behalf — a #FreeMeekMill campaign has had high-profile adherents since his incarceration, including 76ers co-owner Michael Rubin— who has become close with Mill. The 76ers fans have also rallied around Mill. The 76ers, after being the laughingstock of the NBA for half a decade, is unstoppable of late, winning 16 straight games and making the playoffs for the first time in years. Freedom for Meek Mill would just be another sign the 76ers, who’ve aligned themselves with Mill’s freedom, are on a roll. The 76ers take on the Miami Heat in Game 2 of their NBA Playoffs first round Monday night. Meek Mill’s 2010 mixtape is called Mr. Philadelphia.
[NOTE: Though unrelated, the timing of the Philly DA new tack is interesting as Philadelphia law enforcement is under pressure after it removed two black men from a Starbucks this weekend for “trespassing” despite protests from other customers that the men hadn’t done anything wrong. The incident has gone viral. ]
