Adnan Syed, subject of Serial podcast, has murder conviction overturned: Who is he? Why was he in jail?

In a twist straight out of Serial, the podcast that made him a worldwide name and brought the true-crime genre into the mainstream, Adnan Syed’s conviction for the 1999 murder of his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee has been overturned.

A Baltimore judge on Monday ordered the release of Syed, now 41 years old and who has spent more than two decades behind bars, after prosecutors said they had uncovered new evidence.

Circuit Court Judge Melissa Phinn’s decision that the state violated its legal obligation to share evidence that could have bolstered Syed’s defence spurred gasps and applause in the crowded courtroom.

Ordering Syed to be placed on home detention with GPS location monitoring, Phinn added that the state must decide whether to seek a new trial date or dismiss the case within 30 days.

“All right Mr Syed, you’re free to join your family,” Phinn said as the hearing ended.

Minutes later, Syed emerged from the courthouse and flashed a smile as he was shepherded to a waiting SUV through a sea of cameras and a cheering crowd of supporters.

Syed did not speak during the hearing, nor did he address the reporters outside afterward. But after the hearing, his lawyer Erica Suter described his reaction to the decision, saying: “He said he couldn’t believe it’s real.”

Sara Patel, a friend of Syed’s, said “we’re very happy and relieved that he’s finally free. We’ve just been on pins and needles this whole time.”

The makers of the wildly popular Serial podcast have released a new episode (‘Adnan is out’).

Show host Sarah Koenig “was at the courthouse when Adnan was released, a new episode is coming tomorrow morning,” the Serial team tweeted.

But who is Syed? Why was he in jail for two decades? Let’s take a closer look

Conviction and Serial fame

In 1999, Syed, then in high school, was arrested for the murder of his ex-girlfriend Lee after her body was discovered buried at a Baltimore park.

Both Syed and Lee were high school honour students and children from immigrant families – he Pakistani, she South Korean – who had concealed their relationship from their conservative parents.

At trial, prosecutors made much of Syed’s Pakistani roots and argued that he had, after his ‘honour had been offended’ after Lee broke up with him, murdered her in a fit of rage.

In 2000, Syed was convicted of strangling the 18-year-old and sentenced to life in prison.

Syed languished behind bars for years before shooting to worldwide fame in 2014 after the debut season of Serial, which focused on Lee’s murder and raised doubts about some of the evidence prosecutors had used.

The podcast revolutionised the true-crime genre, made amateur sleuths of many and inspired heated discussions across dinner tables, water coolers and online forums about Syed’s innocence or guilt.

Serial, a monster hit, was the brainchild of long-time radio producer and former Baltimore Sun reporter Sarah Koenig, who spent more than a year digging into Syed’s case and reporting her findings in almost real-time in hour-long segments.

The 12-episode podcast won a Peabody Award and popularised podcasts for a wide audience.

Still, it didn’t change things for Syed, who throughout the years continued to maintain his innocence.

In 2016, a lower court ordered a retrial for Syed on the grounds that his attorney, Cristina Gutierrez, who died in 2004, didn’t contact an alibi witness and provided ineffective counsel.

But after a series of appeals, Maryland’s highest court in 2019 denied a new trial in a 4-3 opinion.

The Court of Appeals agreed with a lower court that Syed’s legal counsel was deficient in failing to investigate an alibi witness, but it disagreed that the deficiency prejudiced the case.

The court said Syed waived his ineffective counsel claim.

Then, in 2019, US Supreme Court declined to review Syed’s case.

That seemed to put an end to matters once and for all.

Twist in the tale

Until last week, when prosecutors filed a motion saying a lengthy investigation conducted with the defence had uncovered new evidence that could undermine Syed’s conviction.

“I understand how difficult this is, but we need to make sure we hold the correct person accountable,” assistant state’s attorney Becky Feldman told the judge as she described various details from the case that undermine the decades-old conviction, including other suspects, flawed cellphone data, unreliable witness testimony and a potentially biased detective.

After the hearing, state’s attorney Marilyn Mosby said investigators are waiting for the results of “DNA analysis” before determining whether to seek a new trial date or throw out the case against Syed and “certify his innocence.”

The investigation “revealed undisclosed and newly-developed information regarding two alternative suspects, as well as unreliable cell phone tower data,” Mosby’s office said in a news release last week.

The other suspects were known persons at the time of the original investigation, but weren’t properly ruled out nor disclosed to the defence, said prosecutors, who declined to release information about the suspects, due to the ongoing investigation.

Prosecutors said the failure to disclose the alternative suspects to defence attorneys amounted to what’s known as a Brady violation.

But Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh, whose office represented the state during Syed’s appeals, issued a statement Monday evening saying “among the other serious problems with the motion to vacate, the allegations related to Brady violations are incorrect.”

“Neither State’s Attorney Mosby nor anyone from her office bothered to consult with either the Assistant State’s Attorney who prosecuted the case or with anyone in my office regarding these alleged violations,” Frosh said. “The file in this case was made available on several occasions to the defence.”

Prosecutors said they weren’t asserting that Syed is innocent, but they lacked confidence “in the integrity of the conviction” and recommended his release.

“We need to make sure we hold the correct person accountable. “We will be continuing our investigation,” they said, while promising to “do everything we can to bring justice to the Lee family.”

‘Not a podcast for me’

The state’s attorney’s office had said if the motion were granted it would effectively put Syed in a new trial status, vacating his convictions, while the case remained active.

Syed was led into the crowded courtroom in handcuffs Monday. Wearing a white shirt with a tie, he sat next to his attorney. His mother and other family representatives were in the room, as was Mosby.

During the hearing, Hae Min Lee’s brother Young Lee spoke to the court, saying he feels betrayed by prosecutors, since he thought the case was settled.

“This is not a podcast for me. This is real life,” he said.

An emotional Lee said he was “kind of blindsided” by the prosecutor’s decision to vacate Syed’s conviction.

“Out of nowhere I hear that there’s a motion to vacate judgment,” he said. “It’s tough going through this again and again and again.”

Lee said he “trusts the court system” and asked the judge to “make the right decision.”

Speaking outside the courthouse after the ruling, Mosby expressed sympathy for Lee’s brother and said she understands why he feels betrayed.

“But I also understand the importance as the administer of the criminal justice system to ensure equality and justice and fairness. That is entitled to the defendant, as well,” she added.

With inputs from agencies

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