Serial's Adnan Syed has been granted a new trial
The subject of the acclaimed podcast has won a major victory
Adnan Syed, the subject of the acclaimed documentary podcast Serial, has been granted a new trial.
Syed was found guilty in 2000 of the murder of his ex-girlfriend, Hae Min Lee. He is currently serving a life sentence plus 30 years.
However, his lawyer announced on Thursday that Baltimore judge Martin Welch has now agreed to Syed's request for a new trial.
It's an incredible outcome for Syed and his family – but its also astounding for all those millions of people who were transfixed by his complex case. After the podcast ended, communities on Reddit, Facebook and other online forums kept investigating the murder and discussing what might have happened.
Syed argued in Baltimore court that Cristina Gutierrez, his lawyer in the initial trial, had provided ineffective counsel and failed to investigate a crucial alibi.
Welch disagreed with most of Syed's claims but agreed that Gutierrez should have cross-examined a state’s expert witness about the reliability of mobile phone data that placed him near the place that Lee's body was found.
