Roc Nation and Amazon have presented new evidence in their ongoing legal battle against A. Charles Peruto Jr., the attorney representing Meek Mill's presiding judge.
In September 2018, Peruto sued the companies over leaked audio in which is heard blasting Genece Brinkley, the Philadelphia judge who sentenced Meek to two-four years in prison over a probation violation. The controversial decision was the focus of a six-part documentary series produced by Roc Nation and Amazon. Peruto, whom Brinkley hired after she accused Meek's camp of defaming her, was one of the many figures who agreed to be interviewed for the project. At one point during the sit-down, the attorney was recorded criticizing the judge's handling of the case and said Meek should've received a new trial: "Let me tell you something, that was hard to do because defending this judge . . . She looks fucking awful," Peruto was heard saying in the leaked audio.
The attorney later claimed that those comments were off-the-record, and accused the producers of editing the audio and sharing it with the media in attempt to generate hype around the docu-series.
"These illegally intercepted and digitized oral communications were then edited and leaked to the press so that Peruto’s off the record words would be manipulated against him and his client, Judge Brinkley," the plaintiff alleged in court documents obtained by Complex, "and to maliciously further the defendants’ own agenda in maximizing the buzz and profitability of the upcoming Meek Mill Documentary Series."
Judge Gerald McHugh eventually asked that the audio undergo expert analysis to determine whether or not it had been modified. The defendants submitted court documents that outline the findings Catalin Grigoras and Jeff Smith—two forensic experts who concluded that the audio in question was authentic.
"Even though they are recompressed into different formats, their content accurately reflects the dialogue recorded in the original evidence files," the court documents read.
The defendants will now wait to see if Judge McHugh will dismiss Peruto's lawsuit based on the experts' analysis. Keep it locked as more details about the case become available.
