UPDATE: Meek Mill's attorney announced he will be released from prison. New details here.
Actor and comedian Kevin Hart visited his native Philadelphia Wednesday to meet with jailed rapper Meek Mill.
Hart was accompanied by 76ers co-owner Michael Rubin, who said Mill appeared to be in "good spirits" despite his ongoing legal battle.
Mill, whose legal name is Robert Williams, remains imprisoned in Chester County after being sentenced to 2 to 4 fours in prison for violating his probation. But last week, the Philadelphia District Attorney’s office expressed support for a new trial after evidence surfaced earlier this year implicating Mill's arresting officer, Reginald Graham, in a series of corruption scandals.
Graham's name was included in a list of so-called corrupt cops whose testimony could not be trusted and should not be used in court.
Despite receiving that information from the DA's office, Philadelphia Judge Genece Brinkley denied a request from Mill's legal team for a new trial date to be set. Instead, she scheduled an evidentiary hearing for June.
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Hart, who attended high school in Northeast Philadelphia, called the circumstances surrounding Mill's incarceration "a personal vendetta."
"He shouldn't be in jail," the actor said Wednesday afternoon. "I’m not going to say this guy is an angel ... but he has done his time. He has paid for it.
Hart vowed to continue supporting Mill while he remains in prison and after he is released. Ending mass incarceration will be the rapper's top priority, Hart said.
"He wants to see change," Hart said. "Walking out of here and not looking back and not doing something for those guys still in there is not what his priorities are. He wants to make change."
