On Monday, a U.S. judge overturned the conviction of a man sentenced to 23 years in prison for a crime he has consistently denied responsibility for in a case presented by the world-famous Serial podcast.
Adnan Syed, 42, was sentenced in 2000 to life in prison for the murder of his ex-girlfriend Hye Min Lee in Baltimore, on the US East Coast. Last week, the city’s attorney general, Marilyn Mosby, unexpectedly asked for the verdict to be overturned, citing her doubts about the guilt of the gentleman in the case, and demanded his release.
Mosby said she had uncovered “two other suspects”, critical information that was poorly exploited at the time and was not shared with Syed’s defense lawyers prior to his trial. On Monday, one of the judges granted the prosecutor’s request at a meeting that took place in a crowded courtroom in Timor. Judge Melissa Finn said “in the interests of fairness and equality, the motion has been granted and the defendant will be released” after he is provided with an electronic wristband. After the police removed El Sayed’s handcuffs, several people in the courtroom applauded before being reminded to keep order. The gentleman, who appeared with a long beard and a hat on his head, did not react in any way.
“He finds this decision hard to believe and wants to spend some time with his family,” his lawyer, Erica Sutter, told the court as he climbed into the car without making any statement.
“I cheated”
Prosecutor Marilyn Mosby stressed that the judiciary “has not yet found Mr. El Sayed not guilty,” noting that she will await the results of further DNA testing before deciding whether to drop the charges or hold a new trial.
Mosby has 30 days to make a decision. Whatever happened, she vowed to continue the investigation “to make sure Hye Min Lee’s family knows the identity of her daughter’s killer.”
At the hearing, a speech by the victim’s brother, Yong Li, was witnessed over the phone, during which he spoke of the confusion he experienced. “We are living in a nightmare that never ends,” he said, noting that he felt as if he had been duped by prosecutors who held a defendant who did not commit a crime for years before they finally changed their minds.
The case began in February 1999 when police found the body of Hye Min Lee, then 18 years old, half-buried in a Baltimore woods. A year later, Adnan al-Sayed, then aged 17, was arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment. The prosecution then stated that the master could not bear the thought that Hye Min Lee was breaking up with him because of another man, and strangled her. Al-Sayed has consistently denied this accusation, claiming that he is a victim of anti-Muslim prejudice. In 2014, a group of journalists conducted a corresponding investigation within the twelve episodes of the first season of the radio series Serial. on its basis, the HBO channel was created.
Apology
An investigation by journalists showed that Adnan Al-Sayed’s lawyer disregarded the data from the mobile phone, which were in favor of the accused, as well as the testimony of a young woman, which could give him a possible acquittal.
The work of journalists led to the reopening of the case: in March 2018, the Maryland Court of Appeals ordered a new trial, saying that the lawyer provided “insufficient assistance” to her client. In March 2019, the Maryland Supreme Court concluded that counsel erred in not pointing out certain elements, but indicated that the verdict would not have been different had all the evidence been presented,” and subsequently declined to hold a new trial. Syed’s defense went to court. The Supreme Court’s refusal to intervene in the case in 2019 dashed Al-Syed’s hopes of his release, but Baltimore’s attorney general, who specializes in correcting miscarriages of justice, reopened the case, leading to a final decision .The new episode of the podcast will air on Tuesday morning.
