Judge weighs continued freedom for Adnan Syed in ‘Serial’ murder case

BALTIMORE — More than a decade after Adnan Syed’s murder case attracted massive interest through the hit podcast “Serial,” a Baltimore judge is considering a request to reduce his sentence to time served, which would allow him to remain free indefinitely even though his conviction still stands.

Both prosecutors and defense attorneys told Judge Jennifer Schiffer that Syed doesn’t pose a risk to public safety. Schiffer also heard from the victim’s family, who urged her uphold Syed’s sentence.

After several hours of testimony, Schiffer indicated that her written order will address Syed’s recent accomplishments and the unimaginable suffering of the victim’s family as well as the horrific nature of the crime. “It not my intention to leave everyone waiting for too long,” she said.

Syed, now 43, was released from a life sentence in 2022 after Baltimore prosecutors uncovered problems with the case and asked a judge to overturn his murder conviction in the 1999 slaying of his high school ex-girlfriend, Hae Min Lee, who was found strangled to death and buried in a makeshift grave.

With his conviction was temporarily vacated, Syed has been working at Georgetown University’s Prisons and Justice Initiative and caring for aging relatives. His father died in October.

But challenges from Lee’s family led to his conviction being reinstated by the Maryland Supreme Court for a procedural reason — so that the victim’s family could get proper notice of the hearing that freed him from prison.

The judge acknowledged the “lengthy and frankly tortured history of this case.” She described how the grief of Lee’s family has been compounded through decades of litigation and intense media attention.

Syed, however, is not the same person he was at age 17, she said.

“He has changed. He has matured, and he has had some success in society,” Schiffer said.

Lee never had the chance “to do any of these things,” she added.

The emotional testimony included character witnesses who described Syed as having an even temper, strong communication skills, loving relationships and an impressive ability to remain hopeful during 23 years behind bars.

Eric Simmons, an exoneree who was incarcerated with Syed for many years, said he demonstrated a level of humanity and compassion from the very beginning of his prison term.

“In a place that is referred to as the belly of the beast, Syed showed people, including myself, that you don’t have to act like an animal even though you’re incarcerated,” he said.

But Lee’s family and their attorney urged the judge to honor Syed’s conviction and uphold his sentence. They said the recent proceedings — starting in 2022 when they were shocked to learn of Syed’s abrupt release — have ripped open old wounds.

Lee’s younger brother, Young Lee, said he endured the pain of sitting through Syed’s original trial. When it was finally over, he said, the guilty verdict meant his sister “could finally rest in peace.” Learning of the state’s efforts to throw out Syed’s conviction left him in shock, wondering if prosecutors were still on the family’s side, he said through tears.

When he was finished speaking, the judge offered an apology: “I am so sorry for what you’ve been through, and all I can say is that your words are not lost on me, and my heart goes out to you,” she told him.

In a videotaped statement speaking in Korean, Lee’s mother questioned the integrity of the American criminal justice system that she believed had solved her daughter’s murder 25 years ago. She said she took comfort in Syed’s conviction even as she struggled to maintain her will to live.

“Those who commit a crime should pay the price,” she said.

Syed became choked up talking about how the Lee family has suffered. He said he’s trying to keep his head down and contribute positively to society.

“I just acknowledge their pain. I don’t mean to cause more pain for them,” he said. “I try my best to live a good life, because that’s what I owe to everyone.”

Syed has maintained his innocence from the beginning, but many questions remain unanswered even after the “Serial” podcast combed through the evidence, reexamined legal arguments and interviewed witnesses. The series debuted in 2014 and drew millions of listeners who became armchair detectives.

Rife with legal twists and turns, the case has recently pitted criminal justice reform efforts against the rights of crime victims and their families, whose voices are often at odds with a growing movement to acknowledge and correct systemic racism, police misconduct and prosecutorial missteps.