Serial's Adnan Syed's Lawyers Ask Supreme Court To Hear Case
BALTIMORE (WJZ) — Adnan Syed's attorneys have officially filed a Supreme Court appeal.
The subject of the popular podcast "Serial" was denied a new trial earlier this year, when the Maryland State Court of Appeals voted 4-3 that there was "not enough" to overturn Syed's conviction.
Now, his lawyers are hoping the U.S. Supreme Court will free him.
They filed the brief Monday, citing ineffective council when the then-teenager was convicted in 2000 in the murder of his high school ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee.
This comes five months after the Court of Appeals voted to reinstate Syed's conviction.
"Already, Adnan's case is being used to deny other defendants relief," said Rabia Chaudry, a friend of Syed's family.
Chaudry said Syed is discouraged by last March's court ruling.
He is serving a life sentence for her murder, but his case was highlighted in 2014 in the podcast "Serial", raising concerns about cell phone tower data and an alibi witness that was never called to testify.
"It's such BS!" said Asia McClain in March.
Syed's attorneys hoped his alibi, Woodlawn High School classmate Asia McClain, could spark a new trial.
She said she saw Syed in a library the day of the murder, which conflicts with the State of Maryland's timeline.
Syed's attorney, Justin Brown, has been on his appeal for years.
"So many other courts have said, 'Hey, this guy deserves a new trial." We're not asking anyone to set him free, we're asking for a new trial," Brown said.
Brown's petition argues a jury should decide the veracity of McClain's alibi testimony- not the Court of Appeals.
Still, they acknowledge the case is a long shot to be heard.
"We have other claims that we absolutely intend to raise and go back to state court. We are not done by any stretch of the imagination," Chaudry said.
McClain, the potential witness, said on Monday she hopes the Supreme Court grants a new trial.
The Supreme Court hears less than two percent of the more than 7,000 cases petitioned each year.