Baltimore prosecutors filed a motion to seek a retrial for Adnan Syed, whose murder conviction was the subject of the hugely popular Serial podcast.
Syed was 17 when he was sentenced to life in prison for the 1999 murder of his girlfriend Hae Min Lee.
He has kept his innocence and has appealed against his conviction for years, with the case first brought to global attention by the 2014 hit podcast, which raised doubts about Syed’s guilt.
After serving more than 20 years in prison, he could now be released, pending a retrial.
The serial evidence suggested by witness Asia McClain could have corroborated Syed’s account that he was in the library at the time of the murder.
The motion filed today in support of a retrial for Syed revealed new information regarding two alternative suspects.
Evidence pointing to two other people – including one who threatened to kill the victim – is alleged not to have been disclosed to Syed’s defense attorneys at the time of his original trial.
According to the trial file, one of the suspects said “He would have done it [Ms. Lee] to disappear. She would have killed her. “
Both have been known to the police since 1999, according to a court document.
New information also revealed that one of the suspects was convicted of assaulting a woman in his vehicle and that one of the suspects was convicted of serial rape and sexual assault.
The victim’s car was also found directly behind the home of one of the suspect’s family members.
Adnan and Hae Min Lee at the prom. Image from the case against Adnan Syed. Pic Pic: HBO / Sky Atlantic / NOW TV
Adnan Syed in 2016
Unreliable and inconsistent testimony
The state also acknowledged concern that the conviction was based primarily on the unreliable and inconsistent testimony of a witness that was corroborated by inaccurate and misleading forensic evidence.
Much of Mr. Syed’s original trial centered around cell phone data, which corroborated some of Jay Wilds’ testimony regarding Syed’s position earlier in the day. However, the log notice specifically informed that billing positions for incoming calls “would not be considered reliable location information”.
Despite this warning, prosecutors used the billing location for incoming calls for exactly that purpose, to prove that the defendant was in a certain area at a particular time.
“For this reason, after a nearly a year-long investigation examining the facts of this case, Syed deserves a retrial in which he is properly represented and the most recent evidence can be presented,” State Attorney Marilyn Mosby.
He said prosecutors spoke to Ms. Hae Min Lee’s family.
Read more: Serial and the case against Adnan Syed
Adnan was only 17 when he was sentenced. Pic: HBO / Sky Atlantic / NOW TV
Syed was only 17 when he was sentenced to life imprisonment plus 30 years. Image: AP
Request that Syed be released
If the court upholds this motion, it will effectively put Mr. Syed in a new state of trial: his convictions will be overturned but the case remains active.
“Whether the state ultimately continues with a trial in this matter or dismisses the allegations will depend on the outcome of the ongoing investigation,” the document reads.
“The state will ask that the defendant be released on his own authorization or on bail pending investigation if this court approves the immediate motion.”
Prosecutors are not saying that Syed is innocent, but have said that “the state no longer has faith in the integrity of the sentence.”
Shamim Rahman, Adnan Syed’s mother, wipes a tear before the Maryland Court of Appeals in 2018
“Given the extraordinary lack of reliable evidence involving Mr. Syed, coupled with mounting evidence pointing to other suspects, this unfair conviction cannot stand,” said Assistant Public Defender Erica Suter, Mr. Syed’s attorney and director of Innocence. Project Clinic.
“Mr. Syed is grateful that this information has finally seen the light of day and looks forward to his day in court.”
