Baltimore Prosecutors Drop All Charges Against ‘Serial’s’ Adnan Syed

Adnan Syed, whose murder conviction was profiled in the popular podcast “Serial,” has always maintained his innocence in the 1999 murder of his former girlfriend Hae Min Lee. Now, more than 20 years later, a Baltimore judge has overturned his conviction and released him from prison, and prosecutors have dropped all charges against him.

18-year-old Hae Min Lee was last seen on Jan. 13, 1999, and her body was found strangled to death four weeks later on Feb. 9, 1999 in Leakin Park, Maryland. Her ex-boyfriend, then 17-year-old Syed, was arrested for the crime and sentenced to life in prison within a year. He was convicted of first-degree murder, robbery, kidnapping, and false imprisonment.

As detailed by the hit podcast “Serial,” Syed’s conviction was largely based on the story of one witness: Jay, who testified that he helped Syed bury Lee’s body. After the success of the podcast, many people expressed concern that Syed was wrongfully convicted and wanted his case to be re-examined, including the likes of celebrities like Kim Kardashian.

While authorities had claimed Lee struggled in a car with Syed before her death, Syed's attorney, Rabia Chaudry, argued for that to be true, a killer would have to be “in close proximity to the victim.” According to documents obtained by The Baltimore Sun, in 2019, prosecutors tested items including fingernail clippings, a rope, blood samples, a liquor bottle, items of clothing, and a condom wrapper. None tested positive for Syed's DNA.

In 2021, the Baltimore state’s attorney said she no longer had confidence in Syed’s conviction. After a yearlong investigation with Syed’s lawyer, prosecutors fought to overturn his conviction “in the interests of justice and fairness,” and that, “at a minimum,” he be given a new trial.

After prosecutors and Syed’s lawyer filed motions questioning the integrity of the trial and evidence that has left him behind bars the past 23 years, Baltimore Circuit Judge Melissa Phinn overturned Syed’s first-degree murder conviction on Sept. 19, 2022, The Baltimore Sun reported.

Baltimore prosecutors had 30 days to decide whether to pursue a new trial and on Oct. 11, 2022, after receiving DNA test results that excluded Syed from the DNA recovered from evidence, they dropped all charges against Syed.