Adnan Syed, 35, who became famous in 2014 when the wildly popular Serial podcast investigated the 1999 murder of his former high school girlfriend, Hae Min Lee, for which he received a life sentence in 2000, may be granted a retrial and the opportunity to introduce an alibi witness.
Syed’s attorney, Justin Brown, asked for a new trial based on the fact that a defense attorney in the previous case, the late Cristina Gutierrez, never called Syed’s high school friend Asia McClain as a witness. Furthermore, she did not seek a plea deal for Syed despite his request that she inquire about the possibility of the Maryland Court of Special Appeals issuing an order remanding Syed’s case to a lower court, so the testimony of the witness, who was never interviewed, could be added to the record.
McClain has said in an affidavit, that she was in a library with Syed when Lee was killed. McClain wrote an affidavit in 2000 establishing an alibi for Syed, and filed another affidavit earlier in 2015 claiming that former Assistant State’s Attorney, Kevin Urick, suppressed her testimony at Syed’s 2010 appeal, and discouraged her from participating in the trial.
“We are very pleased with the Court of Special Appeals’ ruling and we think it’s the fair thing to do and it’s in the interest of justice that this case be remanded to hear the testimony of Asia McClain. From the beginning we’ve wanted Asia McClain’s testimony to be part of the record and now it looks likely that it’ll happen. This is another big step in the right direction, and it brings us closer to our ultimate goal of getting a new trial for Adnan Syed,” Brown told The Huffington Post.
The Appeals Court’s order, however, does not guarantee McClain will be allowed to testify. The court wrote that its ruling was “in the interest of justice” and will give the Baltimore Circuit Court the opportunity to hear McClain’s testimony. It states that Syed may file a request with the Baltimore Circuit Court to reopen proceedings to, “supplement the record with relevant documents and even testimony,” that the appeals court will later review as it makes a determination about whether Syed deserves a new trial.
