Free Meek

Meek Mill is a hip hop superstar, but got his start as a battle papper on the streets of Philly's roughest neighborhoods. Born as Robert Rihmeek Williams in 1987, "Meek" spends his childhood in public housing projects surrounded by violent crime and a crack epidemic. His father provides for the family through a criminal enterprise but eventually meets a violent death. Meek's mother fights to make ends meet as Meek struggles to find a male role model in a community that is rapidly losing men to an epidemic of drug violence and mass incarceration. Meek is a shy, quiet kid. When he discovers rapping, he bursts out of his shell. He has a natural talent and quickly rises on the local music scene. At 17, he moves across town into his cousin's house on Hemberger Street. His new environment brings him into contact with more dangerous surroundings, but also a basement recording studio. As he loses more friends to the destructive violence in his neighborhood, he decides to buy a gun for his personal protection. It's a fateful decision that leads to a dangerous encounter with law enforcement and starts a dark journey into the Philadelphia criminal justice system that he will spend the next 11 years trying to escape.

Badly beaten after his arrest, Meek spends his first night in jail. It takes his family many months to raise his bail money. Once released and awaiting trial, Meek spends his time in the recording studio grinding away on new music. At trial, Meek is at first relieved when he learns his case is going to be handled by Judge Genece Brinkley, a black woman. Prosecutors call only a single witness, his arresting officer Reggie Graham. Meek is shocked when Graham swears that Meek pointed a gun at him during a drug raid on the Hemberger Street house. Judge Brinkley finds Meek guilty of gun and drug charges and sentences him to 11 ½ to 23 months in jail and 10 years of probation. While he's incarcerated, Meek's mixtape Flamerz 2 drops and it's an instant hit. Once out of jail and on probation, he is free to perform, and his career takes off. Meek attracts the attention of legendary producer, Rick Ross. He signs with Ross's Maybach Music and with Jay-Z's management company, ROC Nation. His new album, Dreams and Nightmares, promises to be a bigger hit, but his touring is interrupted by a series of probation violations that lands him back in front of Judge Brinkley. The consequences of the probation violations impact Meek's ability to promote his album and eventually send him back to jail. Despite the setbacks, Meek records another album, Dreams Worth More Than Money, catapulting him to the next level of stardom. When his next encounter with Judge Brinkley occurs, the stakes are higher than ever.

Allegations of a bizarre request by Judge Brinkley at a probation hearing fuel speculation by Meek's supporters that she is taking an unusually personal interest in Meek's case. She sidelines him from performing and prohibits him from earning money while he's on house arrest. The stresses of probation take a toll on Meek and events in his personal life spiral out of his control, including a fight and drug addiction. Meek rehabilitates himself and goes back into the recording studio, using his personal struggles to fuel his creativity. The result is his masterpiece, Wins and Losses. He begins promoting the album in New York, but a high-profile arrest for popping wheelies on a dirt bike brings him back into Judge Brinkley's sights. Although he is not charged with a crime, Brinkley schedules another probation violation hearing. This time, Brinkley's patience has run out. She orders that he be imprisoned for 2-4 years and Meek begins his new sentence in solitary confinement. Meek's treatment within the criminal justice is seen by many as an indication of how America is failing black men. Success, fame and wealth do not change how they are viewed by a system that stalks them. The outrage in the city of Philadelphia explodes and FREE MEEK protesters take to the streets. Some of Meek's supporters hire private investigators to look into the Judge's background. Meek's lawyers find the results of the investigation shocking and attempt to remove her from the case. When the detectives turn their attention to Meek's original 2007 arrest, a much larger mystery reveals itself.

Meek's young son Papi misses his father, but there is nothing he can do in the face of Judge Brinkley's authority except join the growing FREE MEEK protests. The Philadelphia Eagles show their support for the movement by taking the field during the Super Bowl to Meek's song "Dreams & Nightmares." Although the city celebrates him, Meek is locked in a prison cell during the game. Private investigators Tyler Maroney and Luke Brindle-Khym were originally hired by Meek's defense team to investigate the Judge, but they turn their attention instead to Meek's original case and revisit all the events of January 2007. They notice irregularities in the paperwork filed by Meek's arresting officer Reggie Graham, a member of Philly's elite Narcotics Field Unit. Tyler and Luke's attempts to talk to other police officers are unsuccessful until another former NFU officer, Jeffrey Walker, reveals explosive allegations about Graham's policing methods and the beating that Meek suffered at the hands of the police. After Meek's 2007 arrest and beating, his sister Nasheema filed a complaint with Internal Affairs. The resulting investigation exonerated all the officers involved, but when Tyler and Luke examine the report itself they find hidden clues that lead them to another surprise witness to Meek's arrest. Former NFU officer Jerold Gibson describes a very different version of the events surrounding Meek's arrest than was originally heard at trial. When a secret list of untrustworthy officers is published, Tyler and Luke add it to the body of evidence that they believe can set Meek free. Meek's lawyers file a Post-Conviction Relief petition to have his original conviction vacated, and a bombshell article in Rolling Stone adds fuel to their fire. Meek's family finally has hope that he will be coming home soon. Only one thing stands in their way: Judge Brinkley will be the one to decide whether or not to free Meek Mill.

Meek's family and supporters gather at the courthouse as Judge Brinkley is scheduled to review his petition for immediate Post-Conviction Relief. During the hearing, even the District Attorney's office concedes that Meek's conviction should be overturned and that he should be given a new trial. However, the Judge's demand for an evidentiary hearing in 60 days shocks everyone and Meek's lawyers must scramble to come up with a new plan as their client continues to languish behind bars. The FREE MEEK movement coalesces efforts to make changes to the legal system. The protests are at fever pitch when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court intervenes and decides that Meek should be released on bail while his hearings play out. Although he is whisked from prison on a helicopter and given a hero's welcome at a Philadelphia 76ers basketball game, he is not yet truly free. Judge Brinkley still presides over his case and will be the ultimate decider of his fate. His time in prison has left him psychologically wounded and Meek struggles to re-integrate with his former life. He returns to the familiar ground of the recording studio and works to translate his personal experiences into his art. The resulting work is a radical evolution in his music. Meek's team gathers at the courthouse once again for what should be the final time in front of Judge Brinkley as she forces them to lay out the case for Meek's freedom. Another shocking decision by the Judge sends Meek into an uncertain legal situation. Meek drops his album Championships, and commits to a new course in his life, speaking for the millions of people unfairly caught up in the criminal justice system. No longer reluctant to be the face of a movement, Meek and a panel of luminaries launch the REFORM Alliance, an organization with the stated goal of freeing one million people from the bonds of prison.