Amazon's 'Free Meek' docuseries tells the real story of Meek Mill's fight against injustice after his conviction at age 18
Meek Mill is a famous rapper and songwriter, but it is his struggle with the criminal justice system that has truly turned him into an icon. Mill, born Robert Rihmeek Williams, has been plagued by the same case for over a decade and now his story is being told in a documentary aptly titled 'Free Meek'.
NBC reports that Meek Mill’s lawyers petitioned a Pennsylvania appeals court on July 16 to overturn the 2008 drug and firearm conviction that has kept him on probation for over ten years. The rapper was18 years old at the time of his conviction.
In November 2017, Mill was sentenced to two to four years in prison by a Philadelphia judge after a pair of arrests for minor parole violations. His sentencing and subsequent imprisonment caused massive outrage with #FreeMeek trending online and crowds gathering to protest on the streets. By the time a court ordered his release in 2018, he had already spent five months in prison. Mill was released after the credibility of the now-retired police officer who testified against him in the 2008 case was brought under scrutiny by prosecutors.
Judge Genece Brinkley, who handed down the sentence and sent him to jail for the probation violations, has since been accused of inappropriate behavior and bias by Mill's lawyers. The rapper has become a prominent voice advocating for criminal justice reform with his case being seen by many as a perfect example of racial bias in the criminal justice system.
Mill is now seeking a fresh trial before a new judge and he has the support of prosecutors who have informed the court that they no longer trust the officer who was the sole government witness in the case. If the case is retried, the officer will likely not be called, according to Assistant District Attorney Paul George. Defense lawyer Kim Watterson believes that Mill's case would crumble without the officer’s testimony.
The officer had accused that Mill pointed a gun at him and was in possession of drugs during the arrest outside the rapper's home in Southwest Philadelphia. However, the rapper has denied the allegations. According to a court affidavit, another former officer who was also part of the arrest has revealed that the officer who made the allegations lied under oath during Mill's trial.
After his release, Mill dropped a new album titled 'Championships' in November 2018. The release of the highly acclaimed album marked the completion of his metamorphosis from an innovative musician to a determined activist fighting for prison reform and an end to racism in the criminal justice system.
The Amazon docuseries 'Free Meek' chronicles the life of the rapper and the particulars of the case. The five-episode miniseries has been directed by Isaac Solotaroff and was produced by Jay-Z.
'Free Meek' will drop on August 9, 2019.
