Judge Orders Case Of ‘Serial’ Podcast Subject Adnan Syed Reopened

Lawyers for Adnan Syed, the subject of the hit U.S. podcast Serial, will be allowed to present new evidence in his case after a court ruling on Friday. In Syed’s case, the evidence will be limited to testimony challenging the reliability of cell-tower location data, which played a major role in his conviction; testimony from potential alibi witness Asia McClain; and evidence supporting Syed’s claim of ineffective counsel.

Syed is now serving a life sentence.

Officially, the judge’s order allows Syed’s legal team to reopen what’s known as “post-conviction proceedings”, not a full new trial.

“This is obviously a huge step forward for Adnan”, said his attorney, C. Justin Brown. Syed was convicted of the murder of his ex-girlfriend, Hae Min Lee, while the pair were in high school in Baltimore. He also argued that the prosecution’s case against Syed, which relied on cellphone tower data to place him near the place where Lee’s body was found, was fundamentally undermined by an AT&T cover sheet that warned: “Outgoing calls only are reliable for location status”. McClain claims she was with Syed the day of Lee’s murder and had written an affidavit stating as much fifteen years ago; she wrote another one again earlier this year, claiming that the prosecutor Kevin Urick suppressed her testimony. The podcast raised questions about evidence, witnesses and the effectiveness of Syed’s attorney, who was later disbarred.

But a motion filed in court in August said a newly recovered mobile phone document showed “the cell tower evidence was misleading and should have never been admitted at trial”.

“If I had been made aware of this disclaimer, it would have affected my testimony”, Abraham Waranowitz, the prosecution’s cellphone expert told Koenig last month.