Cop Who Arrested Meek Mill Has Apparently Admitted to Lying, Roughing Up Rapper

Meek Mill

Rapper Meek Mill arrived to prison in November. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

Meek Mill’s legal team continues to churn out proof of conduct they hope will lead to the rapper’s freedom. In the latest development, they say the testimony from the officer who arrested Meek in Philadelphia should be tossed because of questionable conduct.

Reginald Graham is the officer who arrested Meek in 2007 on a drug and gun charge, TMZ reported Wednesday, Feb. 14. The “Wins and Loses” rapper is currently in prison for violating probation stemming from that case, but documents say Graham’s past on-the-job behavior needs a review.

Fellow Philly cop Gerold Gibson said Graham lied about Meek pointing a gun at him and resisting arrest. Instead, Graham said Meek simply removed his gun from his waistband to toss it.

A secretly compiled list of local officers with a history of lying, racism and brutality was compiled by the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office last year. Sources told The Philadelphia Inquirer Tuesday that Graham, who retired from the department last year, was included on the list. Former narcotics officer Jeffrey Walker said he “would steal” with Graham.

Additionally, TMZ’s documents reveal Graham admitted to another officer that he was violent with Meek during his arrest more than a decade ago.

Should Meek’s team be successful getting Graham’s testimony against their client thrown out, it would put them closer to making #FreeMeekMill a reality.

Meek Mill’s team had previously been working to have the judge in charge of his case removed.

Democracy needs journalism it can trust.

This election season, the stakes are higher than usual — and so is the pressure on newsrooms to soften their coverage, stay quiet, or just disappear. Independent reporting, the kind that answers to readers instead of advertisers or political pressure, matters more in a moment like this, not less.

For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed independent and reader-funded. We have no corporate owner and no shareholders telling us what to cover or how to cover it. That independence is also our biggest vulnerability: nothing protects it except readers choosing to fund it directly.

Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under in a moment like this, it's rarely the independent, reader-funded ones that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Back to top