via Marcus Ingram/Getty Images for Bacardi

The case of Philadelphia rapper Meek Mill’s probation violation trial appears illegitimate and now, a new unscrupulous character has entered the frame. On Tuesday, TMZ reported that the court’s clerk, Wanda Chavarria, has been fired after handing the rapper a note in court asking for money to help with her son’s college tuition:

“This will probably be my son’s last semester at VCU if the tuition isn’t paid for this year and unfortunately with my bad credit, I am unable to secure a loan or co-sign a loan for my son. Anything that you can do is very much appreciated.”


It’s a fairly insane breach of ethics, but one that’s within the norm of other allegations related to the Mill trial. First, we learned that Judge Genece E. Brinkley, who sentenced Meek to 2-4 years in prison, requested that he abandon his Roc Nation record contract to sign with her friend, along with mentioning her name in a cover of Boyz II Men’s “On Bended Knee.” In November, the FBI launched an investigation into Brinkley, and it was reported that agents had been monitoring the courtroom since 2016.

There really is no reason why Mill shouldn’t be a free man, watching the Eagles play in the Super Bowl this Sunday, or at the very least, have his sentence appealed and reviewed by literally any other judge than Brinkley. But even for the most high profile defendants, the justice system rarely works the way its name would suggest.