Meek Mill to get new court hearing

Philadelphia rapper Meek Mill will receive a new hearing relating to his 2017 sentencing for parole violations amid concerns over the presiding judge’s impartiality, according to NBC News.

The appellate court hearing is scheduled for July 16 and comes in the wake of Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner (D) backing a new trial for the rapper in May.

{mosads}“In light of the District Attorney’s recent filing, where he supports the granting of a new trial to Meek and the recusal of [Common Pleas Court Judge Genece Brinkley], we hope to have this injustice rectified once and for all,” Mill’s attorney Jordan Siev said in a statement, according to NBC.

Brinkley sentenced Mill to two to four years in November 2017 for violating his probation from a 2008 case due to two arrests, neither of which resulted in a conviction. Krasner’s office argued Brinkley’s court created “the appearance of partiality.”

Brinkley, Krasner’s office alleged, wrongly “assumed the role of investigator” in Mill’s case, personally checking in on him at a homeless shelter where he was performing court-ordered community service.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ordered Mill released on bail last April over questions about the credibility of the police officer who was a key witness in his initial arrest, and Krasner’s office has requested a new trial for the rapper based on whether the officer’s testimony is reliable.

Mills’s case has become a flashpoint in discussions of criminal justice reform, with the city declaring “Meek Mill Weekend” in March to commemorate his advocacy on the issue.