Where Is Adnan Syed Now? And What Does the Latest Court Decision Mean?

From Cosmopolitan

Fans of the Serial podcast know that Adnan Syed was convicted of his classmate and ex-girlfriend’s murder in 2000. Syed received a life sentence, and he’s been in a Maryland prison ever since his conviction. Syed was granted a retrial last year - but Maryland’s Court of Appeals ruled on Friday, March 8 that he won’t get a new trial after all.

Hae Min Lee’s death has gained national attention, thanks to the podcast. And people are divided about whether or not Syed actually killed her. The upcoming HBO documentary The Case Against Adnan Syed will dive into the case, featuring new interviews that weren’t a part of Serial. The documentary has been in the works since 2015, according to HBO, but there have been a lot of developments in Syed’s case over the last few years. Here’s where things stand for Syed as of now.

What’s the Latest with Syed’s Case?

After the 2014 podcast gained national attention, Syed was granted a new hearing in 2016. And Asia McClain Chapman appeared in court during the hearing to speak about Syed. As Serial explained, McClain Chapman had written Syed a letter saying she saw him at the library during the time in which Lee was killed. But Syed’s lawyer, Cristina Gutierrez, didn’t put McClain Chapman on the stand during Syed’s original trial. (Gutierrez passed away in 2004, so she wasn’t around to comment on the podcast.)

At the 2016 hearing, McClain Chapman said that she “couldn’t reconcile he killed her,” according to CBS Baltimore. A Baltimore judge granted Syed a retrial that year, The Telegraph reported, but the state of Maryland appealed the 2016 order. In 2018, though, Syed was granted a retrial, thanks to Maryland’s court of special appeals. But that decision was reversed on Friday, and it looks like Syed won’t be getting a new trial after all. Still, Syed’s lawyer tweeted on Friday, “We will not give up. #FreeAdnan,” after the Maryland Court of Appeals announced its verdict.

As The Telegraph explained, the 2016 ruling came in large part because of the fact that Gutierrez hadn’t used McClain Chapman as a witness, rendering Gutierrez’s defense of Syed “ineffective legal counsel.” In addition to Gutierrez’s failure to put McClain Chapman on the stand, the 2016 ruling also questioned the reliability of the cell phone location data that helped place Syed at Leakin Park, the place of Lee’s murder. Judge Martin P. Welch said at the time that Gutierrez had “rendered ineffective assistance when she failed to cross-examine the State’s expert regarding the reliability of cell tower location evidence,” NBC News reported.

After Syed was granted the retrial in 2018, the state appealed the decision, sending the case to Maryland’s Court of Appeals. The court heard arguments about the case in November, and it issued its ruling on Friday.

What Does Lee’s Family Think of All This?

During the court proceedings in 2016, Lee’s family issued a statement that made their opinion of Syed pretty clear. It looks like they believe Syed is guilty of Lee’s murder, even if Serial fans don’t agree.

“We believe justice was done when Adnan was convicted in 2000, and we look forward to bringing this chapter to an end so we can celebrate the memory of Hae instead of celebrating the man who killed her,” the family said at the time, according to People.

In terms of honoring Lee’s memory, it sounds like the HBO documentary will do just that. The Case Against Adnan Syed will feature some of Lee’s diary entries, Baltimore magazine reported, in order to showcase her voice. Whatever you believe about Syed, Lee deserves justice, and she won’t be forgotten.

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