Rashad Robinson, Executive Director of Color Of Change:

“We applaud the Pennsylvania Supreme Court for directing Judge Genece Brinkley to immediately release Meek Mill from prison, underscoring what we already knew, he did not deserve to be imprisoned in the first place. This decision sets an important precedent against the unjust jailing of so many Black and Brown people for petty probation violations.

Meek’s case is just one example of how the excessively punitive criminal justice system targets Black people every day and turns prisons into profit-generating institutions. Thousands of people are illegally detained in Philadelphia jails on unjust probation and parole violations every day without a hearing or the possibility of posting bail. Together with money bail, probation detainers are one of the largest drivers of mass incarceration.

Today, with the Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision, we proved that when our communities hold those in power accountable, we can expose our racist criminal justice system and stop its disproportionate impact on the lives of Black people. We can’t stop with Meek Mill. The Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas must end the use of illegal detainers immediately so that thousands of others may also have their freedom. And we must work towards justice for all people held under the pernicious trap of probation.”