Rapper Meek Mill’s 2008 drug and firearm conviction was overturned Wednesday and the rapper was granted a new trial.
The Superior Court of Pennsylvania announced its decision in an 18-page opinion, stating that Mill would likely be acquitted if the case were retried.
“We conclude the after-discovered evidence is of such a strong nature and character that a different verdict will likely result at a retrial,” the opinion read.
Philadelphia prosecutors could choose to retry the case or drop it. Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner’s office has said it will not call the police officer who was the sole prosecution witness in Mill’s trial because of doubts about his credibility, The Associated Press reported.
Mill, 32, whose real name is Robert Rihmeek Williams, was arrested in 2007 after an officer with the Philadelphia police department said the rapper pointed a gun at him and was in possession of drugs during an arrest outside his Philadelphia home. Mill has denied the allegations.
The officer later testified against Mill, who was sentenced in 2009 to 11 to 23 months in prison and 10 years of probation.
Mill and his legal team have been fighting to overturn the conviction since 2017 when the rapper was sentenced to two to four years in prison for violating his probation.
He spent five months in prison before the state Supreme Court ordered him to be released in April 2018 after prosecutors said there were “credibility issues” with the officer who testified against the rapper in the 2008 case.
According to the Superior Court of Pennsylvania opinion, the officer, Reginald Graham, allegedly engaged in criminal conduct. He has since resigned from the department.
Mill first learned of the officer’s alleged misconduct in March 2018 after reading a news article about Graham, according to the court documents.
In a statement, Mill thanked the Superior Court of Pennsylvania “for their wisdom and transparency” in reviewing his case.
“The past 11 years have been mentally and emotionally challenging, but I’m ecstatic that justice prevailed,” he said.
The rapper also celebrated the news in a series of tweets.
“Life blessings just keep coming,” he posted, adding in a second tweet: “I’m not on probation right now….new label deal with jayz!!! Today was lit already. ‘wtf GOD’ you be acting a fool.”
The news came the same day Mill and fellow rapper Jay Z announced they had teamed up for a new record label called Dream Chasers.
Michael Rubin, a co-owner of the Philadelphia 76ers and supporter of Mill, said he was “thrilled” that for the first time in the rapper’s adult life, he is “no longer on probation and has no criminal record.”
Janelle Griffith contributed.
