Philadelphia judge accused of influencing case tied to Meek Mill

A Philadelphia judge is accused of attempting to influence a case with ties to rapper Meek Mill.

The Pennsylvania Judicial Conduct Board filed formal charges against Common Pleas Court Judge Scott DiClaudio.

The complaint made public on Tuesday claims Judge DiClaudio tried to influence a colleague’s decision about a case involving defendant Dwayne Jones, a known friend of Meek Mill.

DiClaudio is charged with committing “a host of ethical violations.”

These charges allegedy stem from a meeting that was held in DiClaudio’s judicial chambers on June 12. According to court documents, fellow Judge Zachary Shaffer and a law clerk purchased T-shirts promoting Shay’s Steaks, the Center City cheesesteak shop run by DiClaudio’s wife. 

According to Fox43, after the purchase, Officials allege that DiClaudio asked the clerk to leave and privately slid Shaffer a note with a courtroom number and the name of Dwayne Jones, a defendant awaiting sentencing before Shaffer.

“I’ve heard you might do the right thing anyway,” DiClaudio allegedly told Shaffer, before ripping up the note and discarding it. Jones, a social acquaintance of rapper Meek Mill, had pleaded guilty and was due for sentencing days later. Shaffer reported the exchange to court administrators and later recused himself from the case.

DiClaudio was charged with six counts, including failing to promote confidence in the judiciary, allowing personal relationships to influence his conduct and making statements that could affect a pending case. If convicted, sanctions could range from censure to removal from the bench.

DiClaudio is already on probation from a 2019 case involving unpaid debts and tax liens, which resulted in a suspension without pay. He was found to have not acknowledged debt on his financial disclosure forms and did not obey court orders, leading to repeated contempt citations against him, according to court documents.

DiClaudio’s attorneys say the judge did nothing wrong.

This is a developing story please check back for updates. Information from this article was sourced from Fox43.

Philadelphia judge accused of influencing case tied to Meek Mill  was originally published on rnbphilly.com