‘Serial' Subject Adnan Syed Will Get New Trial in Classmate's Slaying

BALTIMORE -- Maryland's second-highest court ruled Thursday that "Serial" podcast subject Adnan Syed should receive a new trial in the killing of Woodlawn High School classmate Hae Min Lee.The Court of Special Appeals' opinion upheld a lower court's decision to overturn Syed's 2000 conviction in the case, sending it back to Circuit Court for a retrial there, according to a report from The Baltimore Sun. The opinion, which found Syed's previous counsel had failed him in deciding not to call a key alibi witness at his trial two decades ago, could be appealed to the Court of Appeals, the state's highest court. That would mean many more months before Syed finds out whether his conviction will remain or if he will get a new trial. Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh's office, which represents the state in the case, said that it is "currently reviewing today's decision to determine next steps," including whether to appeal. It has 30 days to do so. C. Justin Brown, Syed's attorney, called the higher court's opinion "incredible." "It's been a really long wait, and that's been hard and it's been stressful, obviously not just for us but for Adnan, who's now been in prison for 19 years, going on 20 years," Brown said. "I firmly believe that he is innocent, and our goal is to get him out of prison."   Continue reading...