Reginald Graham, the officer who wrote the search warrant inRobert Rihmeek Williams’ case and testified at his trial, left the Philadelphia police department a few years ago after an internal probe found he had stolen money and then lied about it. Graham testified at trial that Williams pointed a gun at him during his 2007 arrest outside his south-west Philadelphia home. Williams, who was 19 at the time, has denied pointing a gun at police. A police colleague who took part in the arrest later said Graham lied about Williams brandishing a gun. “Rather, [he] observed Williams attempt to discard his weapon,” the president judge Jack A Panella wrote in Wednesday’s opinion, concluding that the new evidence was so strong “that a different verdict will likely result at a retrial”.
However, last week, the assistant district attorney Paul George said the office wouldn’t call the officer at a retrial in light of the questions about his credibility and due to “legal, ethical and constitutional obligations”. Graham was also investigated, but not charged, by the FBI in a separate corruption investigation. The six city drug squad members indicted were all acquitted at a 2015 trial which is not uncommon when police corruption is involved. A Pennsylvania appeals court has overturned the rapper Meek Mill’s conviction in a drug and gun case that has kept the rapper on probation for a decade and made him a celebrity crusader for criminal justice reform. Still, the district attorney, Larry Krasner, said on Wednesday his office needed time to decide whether to drop the case even though everyone agreed the original officer could not be trusted.
The 32-year-old performer is now free of the court supervision he has been under most of his adult life. Meek reported several times that he has had trouble notifying probation officers about his travels as required because of the erratic nature of the music industry. At one point, he spent five months in prison over technical violations of his parole. “The past 11 years have been mentally and emotionally challenging, but I’m ecstatic that justice prevailed,” Williams said in a statement. “Unfortunately, millions of people are dealing with similar issues in our country and don’t have the resources to fight back like I did. We need to continue supporting them.” He has become a very vocal advocate for the reformation of the judicial system. Williams was kept on probation for 10 years and sent back to prison for several short stints for violating parole. He has been called back to court repeatedly over concerns about his travels and, in one instance, use of painkillers. His then girlfriend, Nicki Minaj, testified for him at one such hearing in 2016. He is now free from the false propaganda. The Philadelphia rapper-turned-entrepreneur is launching a new record label in a joint venture with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation. The two performers celebrated the launch of Dream Chasers Records on Tuesday in New York City. Hours later, the court ruling came down.
“Today I didn't even have to use my A.K. I got to say it was a good day.”- Ice Cube
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