Adnan Syed, the subject of the wildly popular podcast Serial, was denied bail by a Baltimore judge on Wednesday. He is currently awaiting the retrial for his murder conviction, which was vacated back in June.
Syed was hoping to be released from a Maryland prison until heading back to court for a new trial regarding the 1999 killing of his ex-girlfriend Hae Mine Lee, according to Entertainment Weekly.
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“This is obviously a setback, but in the bigger picture we are looking toward a new trial and proving his innocence,” C. Justin Brown, Syed’s lead defense attorney said while talking to People.
The case is now being taken to the Maryland Court of Special Appeals where the state is attempting to fight the retrial.
“If the appeals court rules in our favor,” Brown said, “we will be revisiting the bail issue.”
As of now, Syed’s lawyer has not been able to tell him the unfortunate news.
Syed was convicted of murdering Lee, his classmate at Woodlawn High School in Baltimore, back in 2000. He was sentenced to life plus 30 years in prison, but the ruling was vacated in June.
The case was vacated by Judge Martin P. Welch of the Circuit Court for Baltimore City after the podcast Serial and other works brought national attention to the subject.
Judge Welch ruled that Syed’s former attorney’s “failure to cross-examine the state’s cell tower expert about the reliability of cell tower location evidence” was a hugely impactful on the prosecution getting Syed convicted.
“It could be tomorrow it could be four months,” Brown said.
In the request for bail, Syed’s lawyers argued that he is not a flight risk. They stated that he has been a model prisoner while being incarcerated, and that he had no history of violence prior to his arrest in 1999.
Despite the defense attorney’s best efforts, the judge felt differently.
“The circuit court finds that Petitioner has not met his burden to prove he will not flee and his met his burden to prove he does not pose a danger to the victim or any member of the community,” the document reads.
Another notable item from the court document was that the defense made the argument that the state’s case against Syed rested on star witness, Jay Wilds, who was proven to have credibility issues. Brown and his team said the case against Syed “had crumbled” because of the issue.
What are your thoughts about these new details on Serial‘s Adnan Syed not being released before his murder trial?
[H/T Entertainment Weekly, People]
