After more than 16 years in prison, Serial's Adnan Syed may soon be free. Lawyers for Syed, who was featured in the first season of the smash-hit podcast Serial, announced Monday they've filed a motion asking for him to be released on bail. The lawyers are citing the trial's "discredited" evidence as justification for the motion, The New York Times reported.
Syed began serving a life sentence in 2000 for the murder of his high school girlfriend, Hae Min Lee, after being sentenced for the crime in 1999. In a filing submitted to a Maryland court, Syed's lawyer C. Justin Brown insisted Syed was serving time "based on an unconstitutional conviction for a crime he did not commit." "He has no history of violence other than the state's allegations in this case, and if released, he would pose no danger to the community," the filing read.
Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Martin P. Welch granted Syed a retrial three months ago, noting that Syed's lawyer did not question a state expert about cell phone towers, which were used to determine Syed's location on the day of the murder. That, Welch wrote, could create "a substantial possibility that the result of the trial was fundamentally unreliable." Cell tower evidence proved instrumental in Syed's original conviction.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The New York Times reported the Maryland attorney general's office was "not immediately available on Monday to respond to a request for comment."
-
How the ‘British FBI’ will workThe Explainer New National Police Service to focus on fighting terrorism, fraud and organised crime, freeing up local forces to tackle everyday offences
-
The best family hotels in EuropeThe Week Recommends Top kid-friendly hotels with clubs, crèches and fun activities for children of all ages – and some downtime for the grown-ups
-
Moon dust has earthly elements thanks to a magnetic bridgeUnder the radar The substances could help supply a lunar base
-
‘One Battle After Another’ wins Critics Choice honorsSpeed Read Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest film, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, won best picture at the 31st Critics Choice Awards
-
Son arrested over killing of Rob and Michele ReinerSpeed Read Nick, the 32-year-old son of Hollywood director Rob Reiner, has been booked for the murder of his parents
-
Rob Reiner, wife dead in ‘apparent homicide’speed read The Reiners, found in their Los Angeles home, ‘had injuries consistent with being stabbed’
-
Hungary’s Krasznahorkai wins Nobel for literatureSpeed Read László Krasznahorkai is the author of acclaimed novels like ‘The Melancholy of Resistance’ and ‘Satantango’
-
Primatologist Jane Goodall dies at 91Speed Read She rose to fame following her groundbreaking field research with chimpanzees
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
