Did popular 'Serial' podcast get Adnan Syed a retrial?
A Maryland judge has granted a request to reopen the trial of Adnan Syed, a Baltimore man whose first-degree murder conviction in 2000 became the subject of 鈥楽erial,鈥� the most popular podcast in 2014.
Mr. Syed was convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee after her body was found in a park. Although Syed has always claimed his innocence, prosecutors convicted the then-17-year-old based on cellphone tower data that linked Syed to the Baltimore park where Ms. Lee's body was found.聽
Baltimore Circuit Court Judge Martin Welch granted a post-conviction hearing for Syed on Friday, after a cell phone expert and a potential alibi witness filed in the case.聽
The alibi witness, Asia McClain, said she was in the library with Syed during the time of the killing but was never contacted to testify by Syed鈥檚 original lawyer, Cristina Gutierrez. And a former AT&T engineer who testified in the original trial, Abraham Waranowitz, said prosecutors had not shown him a page of Syed鈥檚 cell phone records that contained a disclaimer about the poor reliability of cell phone tower data.
If Judge Welch determines that Syed had inadequate legal representation during his first trial, the convicted killer currently serving a life sentence in prison will be granted a new trial.聽
鈥淩eopening the post-conviction proceedings would be in the for all parties,鈥� Welch wrote in a statement.
鈥淲e think this is a very big step in the direction of getting Adnan a new trial,鈥� C. Justin Brown,聽Syed鈥檚 new defense lawyer, told The New York Times. 鈥淚t鈥檚 exciting news for us, but there鈥檚 still a long way for us.鈥�
And although the two parties disagree about Syed鈥檚 role in the murder, both sides agree 鈥楽erial鈥� played a role in Welch鈥檚 ruling.聽
In September, Deputy Attorney General Thiru Vignarajah said the defense鈥檚 requests for a new hearing are 鈥渕eritless鈥� and opening the first proceedings would be 鈥� and not in the interest of justice.鈥�
Ms. McClain said 鈥楽erial鈥� renewed her desire to participate in the case. 鈥�, I learned more about [Sarah] Koenig鈥檚 reporting, and more about the Syed case,鈥� she said in her January affidavit. 鈥溾� came to understand my importance in the case. I realized I needed to step forward and make my story known to the court system.鈥�
Jay Wilds, the prosecution鈥檚 main witness who claimed he helped Syed bury Lee鈥檚 body, refused an interview by Koenig for the podcast. But after the podcast aired, Wilds felt he was unfairly depicted by Koenig and granted an to tell his side of the story. But during Wilds鈥� efforts to clear his name from 鈥楽erial鈥�, he changed enough details of his original testimony to call his credibility into question.
The podcast 鈥楽erial鈥� was downloaded about , and the journalist behind the project, Sarah Koenig, won a Peabody award for 鈥渋lluminating disturbing flaws鈥� in the criminal justice system. A second series of 鈥楽erial鈥� is set to air later this year, where Koenig will examine the 2009 case of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl who was accused of desertion in Afghanistan after he was captured by the Taliban.
And as for Syed鈥檚 case, Koenig said she is surprised by the judge鈥檚 decision. She told The New York Times, 鈥淚鈥檓 what鈥檚 going to happen next.鈥�
