Meek Mill’s case has been a prime example of systemic corruption. On Wednesday, his lawyer Joe Tacopina sat down with the Breakfast Club to rehash the details of the case from November, when Meek was sentenced to two to four years for popping a wheelie in New York during a music video shoot—what was deemed a technical probation violation—to where the case is now.
Tacopina admitted that he and Meek’s team of lawyers have never seen a case like this before. Corruption has been at the root since the beginning, particularly now that the sole witness in Meek’s 2008 trial, officer Reginald Graham has been discovered to have a documented past of corruption.
The judge presiding over Meek’s case, Genece E. Brinkley, has a notorious history of bias, too. “I’ve called it an unhealthy obsession,” Tacopina said, citing several incidents in the past where Brinkley paid just a little too much attention to Meek, including visiting him in a homeless shelter where he was doing his community service; trying to influence his career decisions by persuading Meek to leave Roc Nation for Charlie Mack; and when, in November, Brinkley asked Meek to cover the Boyz II Men song “On Bended Knee” and give her a shout-out.
“That’s something that’s completely inappropriate for a judge to do. It’s making a request of someone who you hold the keys to their freedom. And if they don’t grant that request, then what happens?” Tacopina asked.
While Tacopina and his team have been making every effort to get Brinkley removed from the case, it’s been difficult, even though the FBI looked into her based on her conduct—and even though both the prosecution and defense agree that Meek’s conviction should be tossed due to constitutional violations.
Still, Tacopina believes that the “case is going to be overturned without question.” The governor, mayor, senators have publicly supported Meek’s cause and want the case overturned. The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office also agreed to bail and agreed his conviction should be overturned.
Above all, Tacopina is seeing the effect the case has had on Meek’s community. “When I’m in Philly, I see the community rally around this. What Meek said to me yesterday was really amazing, that shows you who he is. ‘Joe, if I did this time and it helps fix this system, and shines a light on the deficiencies and the problems with our system, including the probation issues.’ I mean, the numbers are daunting. There are thousands and thousands and thousands of young men, mostly minorities, who are in Pennsylvania prisons for technical violations of probation, not crimes.”
Brinkley, however, has been steadfast in her bias. On Monday, she had a chance to make it right but instead dismissed any pleas for Meek’s release on bail and scheduled his hearing for June. “Obviously there’s a major change in circumstances. The district attorney is now saying we are going to move and join in the motion to have this case overturned. Let him out on bail now.”
On Friday, 80 of the cases where Graham was put on the stand as a witness are being heard by Philadelphia’s President Judge Sheila Woods-Skipper. However, Meek is the only one who’s staying for Brinkley. “To me, [Brinkley's behavior] shows a level of bias and unreasonableness that you can’t even argue against anymore. You can’t even defend it,” Tacopina said.
