Adnan Syed, the focus of the breakthrough podcast hit "Serial," is getting a retrial for his murder conviction. In 2000, Syed was found guilty of killing his girlfriend, Hae Min Lee, and sentenced to life in prison.
Syed's attorneys argued for a retrial for a few different reasons. First, they argued his original lawyer was ineffective for not calling Asia McClain Chapman to the witness stand. McClain Chapman is the only person who says she saw Syed during the window of Lee's murder.
They also said prosecutors in the original case misled jurors about cellphone tower evidence used to place Syed at the location where Lee was buried. And they faulted his lawyers for not cross-examining an expert on the cellphone tower evidence. On that point, the judge agreed and granted a new trial.
The decision comes after a post-conviction hearing in February, which was essentially Syed's last chance to get out of prison. Syed has always maintained his innocence and to this point had exhausted the appeals process.
It's probably fair to say not many people knew or cared about the case until "Serial" debuted in 2014. The podcast has been downloaded more than 100 million times and even won a Peabody Award.
About the Author
