EXCLUSIVE: Love & Hip Hop’s Mendeecees Harris Appeal Shut Down, Attempting to Reduce 8 Year Prison Sentence
Mendeecees
Mendeecees Harris Appeal Shuts Down Attempting to Reduce Prison Sentence
theJasmineBRAND exclusively reports, Mendeecees Harris has received a major legal set back.
On February 13, the court came back with their decision and dismissed the Love & Hip Hop star’s appeal, denying his attempt to reduce his prison sentence. Their response states,
We have considered the remainder of Harris’s arguments and find them to be without merit. Accordingly, the order of the district court hereby is AFFIRMED. Each side to bear its own costs.
Here’s the backstory: Harris, who is married to Yandy Smith (who also stars on Love & Hip Hop) struck a plea deal in the criminal case accusing him of running a drug ring in NY. The prosecutors accused the reality star of shipping more than $2.5 million dollars of heroin and cocaine to New York for over a 7 year period.
The deal had Harris plead guilty to drug trafficking charges and he was facing up to 10 years in prison and up to a $5 million dollar fine. He was also ordered to submit all his Love & Hip Hop paychecks, luxury car and money he received from personal appearances. The prosecution said they believed a sentence of 108-121 months (9-10 years) was justified
The judge sentenced him to eight years and one month in prison, plus five years supervised release. The judge gave him 15 months credit for time already served behind bars.
Mendeecees Harris
Last October, Harris’ lawyer attempted to reduce his eight year+ prison sentence. She explained that as a condition of his release on bail, he forfeited all income he earned totaling $170,755.20 and used his celebrity status as a cast member of Love & Hip Hop to reach young people and impose upon them the dangers of the kind of activities he engaged in through presentations to various community organizations, often 2-4 times a week.
The youth sent about 100 letters to him thanking him and relaying how inspirational his presentations were to them. Yandy and a Federal Agent appeared during his sentencing to speak on his behalf. They told the court about his four children that live with him and Yandy, complied with all of his pretrial supervision and explained that was a positive role model in his community.
His lawyer said that once he is released from prison, the court already ordered he must continue speaking to community groups about his experience and to encourage young people to follow a different course of action.
Yandy & Mendeeces
She pointed out that he voluntarily surrender to the Department of Bureau of Prisons, has employment waiting for him when he is released, had no disciplinary issues during his incarceration and successfully participated in programs available in prison including courses on financial management, adult continuing education, public speaking, restaurant management, health and nutrition courses. He is also enrolled in the residential drug addiction program.
The prosecutors in the case demanded the judge deny his request for a reduced sentence, explaining that there is no justification for such a reduction. They also pointed out that the Presentence Report makes it clear Harris distributed multiple kilogram quantities of cocaine and heroin over a period of years. Further, they said Harris’ plea agreement should be considered generous in its agreement not to apply an increase to the years recommended for his crimes.
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I hope he keeps fighting for his freedom. 8 Years is a long time to miss out on raising your kids.
Should’ve thought of that before deciding to be like Nino Brown. He took the deal. It would be one thing if he went to trial and was convicted. He didn’t. In lieu of a trial where if convicted, could’ve gotten 25+ years, he pled guilty and AGREED to serve 8 years. There’s no recourse for him.
And that’s part of the problem, going to trial shouldn’t be a gamble. That’s basically taking away a person’s right to a fair trial. That’s how many people end up with charges they don’t even deserve or aren’t guilty of. Take a plea deal and no jail time or go to trial, keep coming to court for months on end and risk 30-60-90 days in jail. Like they are punishing the accused for making them do the work to prove them guilty.
Going to trial shouldn’t be gamble??? Going to trial is ALWAYS a gamble. If you’re innocent, you SHOULD go to trial. And if you’re guilty, you should HOPE to be offered a plea deal. Now in the case of Mendencees, innocence or guilt was never in question. He was guilty. They had his dumbass dead to rights. The sentencing guidelines for the charges he was facing…25+ years. Remember he messed around committing FEDERAL crimes. Just dumb. He knew what he was facing and he took the 8 year out, which was about the only smart decision he made in all this. Now he’s in there and he’s figured out that he can’t hang. Too bad. Let this be a lesson. Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time.
Well clearly you don’t understand what I am saying. The trial itself is a gamble, however whatever the punishment is should be the same and/or maybe they shouldn’t even offer plea deals. Because, as I said before, work has to be done to prove a person’s guilt and this is a way to save time and money on behalf of the government. If they could easily prove guilt, there would probably be no plea deal. The trial is a gamble for the prosecutor and the defense. They are penalizing a person’s choice of going to trial by threatening more time, vs taking a plea deal. If you are innocent, you still have the same chances as a person who is guilty, when you go to trial. Trial doesn’t mean a person is innocent or guilty, just that someone could convince someone else, whether it be a judge or jury, that a crime was committed. Do you find an issue with me saying keep fighting for your freedom? Or that 8 years is a long time. I’m confused on how this became a debate.
In Mendencees case HIS side sought a plea deal. The feds spent years building their case against him. They were ready to go to trial. It was HIS side that didn’t want to chance a conviction. 8 years was the best they could negotiate. All things considered, he did okay. Plea deals are a necessary evil. Plea deals benefits both sides. It takes a tremendous amount of time and resources to take a case to trial with no assured outcome. If plea deals weren’t offered and everything went to trial…people charged with crimes would spend half their lives waiting to go to trial, many of them sitting in jail because they can’t make bail. It’s bad enough as it is. The back log would be like Immigration…1-2 years just to get a hearing. And if less time wasn’t offered to take plea deals, then there would be no incentive for ANYONE to take a plea deal and EVERYTHING would go to trial and that doesn’t benefit anyone.
My only issue with you saying ‘Keep fighting for your freedom’ that is the fact that you don’t seem to understand that Mendeeces FORFEITED his right to ‘fight for his freedom.’ If he wanted to fight for his freedom, he should’ve went to trial.
Why would they even allow him a hearing to request reduced sentencing if he forfeited his rights? That makes no sense. I don’t see how it would even make it in front of a judge. If there is an opportunity to request a reduced sentencing or to be let out early, he should take it, if for no one else, his kids.
The appellate courts allowed a hearing because a motion was filed. The hearing was ONLY TO HEAR THE MOTION. It’s that simple. And this was pretty much all the court was looking for – did Mendeecees agree to do the 8 years or nah?? Oh he did?? Dismissed. Appeals are next to impossible to win even under the best of circumstances. You basically need to present evidence that was deliberately HIDDEN from the defense, gross negligence on the part of the defense attorney, OR new evidence that was not available during the during the trial or before you made the plea. But here’s the worst thing for Mendeecees though…do you know what he ACTUALLY pled guilty to?? Trafficking 40 KILOs of cocaine and another Kilo of heroin. That ALONE is 15 to 20 years. So how are you going to take to a judge the argument that you should get even less time for something you’re already getting a steal on??
Many of your points are well taken. However, how do you put a time limit to someone who is now addicted, or a child or family who has been greatly affected because his parents are addicted, or someone was robbed or murdered because that addict felt the need to commit a crime to secure money to purchase their next hit? There is so much to consider. Yes 8 years is a LONG time, but, so too are the scars and addictions of those affected by him putting this stuff on the streets. It’s horrible. So many people are suffering from drug abuse. It’s nasty!!!
I think these are two seperate conversations. I have an opinion about the way the legal system works and I have an opinion about the “drug game”. And you know what…I have many loved ones that have been effected by drug use and it was not because any one forced them. It was because they made a choice to try a drug and then got hooked. It may have started as just a way to have fun. In 2018, with all that we know about drug addiction, people are still making choices to go out and get high. I have friends that I ask, if you watched the struggle your parents went through and you know how it effected you as a child, why do you choose to participate in drug use of any kind? When I was in school, they had the JUST SAY NO campaign. I wonder what happened to it because I don’t see any red ribbons being passed out at my kids school. Drug use is so prominent, it’s even trendy to sing about it in the music and I make sure I talk to my kids about what’s in the music. Just the other day, my 8 year old asked me, “Mom, what is he talking about when he says he is in love with the coco?” And we had an honest conversation. I even asked my dad when he was young were they singing about smoking crack because I don’t remember any songs about it. I want my kids to know, don’t try any of it because you never know how your body will react to it. You think you have it under control or your just having fun and before you know it, it’s all you can think about and your body is craving for it. For the drug user and the drug dealer, it’s a choice. The drug dealer is not the reason why the drug user chose to get high. They would not be supplying it, if there was no demand. Both the user and the dealer have consequences they have to think about when they decide to play that game.
Well stated. They are definitely two separate issues, yet they intertwine. Thank you for your perspective.
Less than five percent of criminal cases go to trial. Most people plea, often because they can not afford adequate legal representation, and are afraid to be further entangled in the system. Many innocent people plea. You don’t have to be guilty
Exactly, it will be over shortly, he’s been in what like 2 years and got time for the 15 months, so he got probably another 5 to go. Wow, that’s still a lot but 25 years is more.
Oh, please! He wasn’t thinking about his kids when he was doing the crime.
wow! Some people get less years for murder. However, I do have an issue with people knowingly selling drugs that cause addiction, abuse, neglect of children, and crimes against communities (as many addicts steal/rob & murder to get their next high). So, this is two-fold…while I believe he is a changed man, he must still pay for his crimes.
Yep!
THEY ALL CHANGE WHEN THEY WANNA GET OUT.
OAN: LOOK HOW BIG THAT NUCCA’S HEAD IS STANDING NEXT TO HIM!!!! WOW!!! IT’S AS LONG AS HIS TORSO! LOL!!!!………..JENNY JONES!!!
Wow they look cozy
His lil àss is tired of getting busted open from the back! He’s been shanked for his rear end virginity!