Released: Adnan Syed murder conviction vacated, judge rules

BALTIMORE -- Adnan Syed was released from prison after his murder conviction was vacated by a judge on Monday.

Officers removed the shackles to a cheer in the courtroom Monday afternoon.

Syed, 41, was previously sentenced to life after he was convicted for the 1999 murder of his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee. 

He served more than 20 years in prison before his murder conviction was vacated.

Syed's attorney said they have sympathy for Lee's family but said her client is innocent. Erica Suter told WJZ that his release was "both joyful and incredibly overwhelming" and revealed that once circuit court judge Melissa Phinn announced the ruling, Syed turned to her and said, "I can't believe it's real."  

Although the conviction has been vacated, prosecutors have not dismissed the case. 

Syed will be on home detention and a new trial date will be set.  

Outside of the courthouse, State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby said that previous prosecutors in Syed's case failed to disclose information that two other men could be suspects.

"Through our review, our investigation revealed the original prosecutors and the subsequent prosecutors, and the Attorney General's Office, failed to disclose alternate information about alternative suspects, one of whom threatened to kill the victim and had motive to kill the victim," Mosby said. "Both of them had a pattern of history of violence against women. Our investigation revealed they may have been involved in the death of that beautiful young lady."

Mosby also added they are awaiting DNA analysis in hopes of proving Syed's innocence.

"We are trying to extradite that with whether or not Adnan's case will be dismissed and we would certify his innocence," Mosby said. 

Mosby argued for the "Brady rule" as to why Syed should be let out of prison. The "Brady rule" requires prosecutors to disclose materially exculpatory evidence in the government's possession to the defense. A "Brady material" or evidence the prosecutor is required to disclose under this rule includes any evidence favorable to the accused--evidence that goes towards negating a defendant's guilt, that would reduce a defendant's potential sentence, or evidence going to the credibility of a witness.  

Attorney General Brian Frosh disputes the allegations related to the Brady violations.

"Among the other serious problems with the motion to vacate, the allegations related to Brady violations are incorrect," Frosh said. "Neither State's Attorney Mosby nor anyone from her office bothered to consult with either the Assistant State's Attorney who prosecuted the case or with anyone in my office regarding these alleged violations. The file in this case was made available on several occasions to the defense."

Syed's previous attorney Justin Brown said that while they are relieved the murder conviction was tossed, the flawed "cell tower evidence" used against Syed is disturbing.

"We are also disturbed, and stunned, by the State's admission that the cell tower evidence used against Adnan was flawed," Brown said. "This is precisely what we have been saying since 2015, when we raised this issue in a motion to re-open postconviction. Prosecutors representing the State bitterly fought this claim, even going so far as calling an FBI witness who incredibly denied the unreliability of the cell phone evidence. When the State lost this argument on the merits, it turned to technical arguments and eventually convinced an appeals court that the argument had been waived. It was a win-at-all-costs approach. Never, until now, was there an effort to do the right thing and admit that an error had been made."

Mosby's office released a statement Monday evening about the next steps in the judicial process.

"To be clear, the State is not asserting, at this time, that Mr. Syed is innocent," the statement said. "While the investigation remains ongoing, when considering the totality of the circumstances, the State lacks confidence in the integrity of the conviction and request that Mr. Syed be afforded a new trial."

Now, defense attorneys are celebrating Syed's freedom.

"Words cannot express how happy we are for Adnan, his family, his new defense team, and all the supporters who have rallied behind him for all these years," Brown said. "This is a great day, and it is a time to celebrate."

Those who served time with Syed are celebrating the judge's decision to vacate his conviction too.

"We're just so happy for his family, so happy," Kenneth McPherson said. "He's just the best human being you will ever meet. And we stood on his innocence from day one."

Desmond Perry, another man who said he was formerly incarcerated with Syed, said he empathized with Lee's family.

"Unfortunately, when I heard the victim's—I think it was her brother who spoke—it was heartbreaking," Perry said. "It was heartbreaking because to, you know. to have a family keep having to go back and forth through this same situation over and over again—I can only imagine what they're going through. The family and the victim, in my case, when through the same thing. And it's tough. I know it's tough for them. But on one hand, I can only ask that they accept the ruling and accept what the state presented as evidence to show that it wasn't Adnan."

Syed was 17 years old and a senior at Woodlawn High School in 1999 when he was charged in Lee's death.

He was convicted of the crime in 2000 and spent nearly 23 years in prison.

Syed's attorney Erica Suter said Syed had been accepted into college and was planning to major in pre-med before he was found guilty.

"Those dreams were ended when Adnan was accused of the brutal murder of his friend and classmate, Hae Min Lee," Suter said. "Twenty-three years later, we now know what Adnan and his loved ones have always known, that Adnan's trial was profoundly and outrageously unfair. Evidence was hidden from him, evidence that pointed to other people as the killers. This hidden evidence established that other people had threatened Hae's life, had hidden her car in places known to them. Under the law, prosecutors should have disclosed this evidence to Adnan so that he could defend himself –  but they did not."

Syed is leaving prison at 41 years old.

An emotional mother and brother hopped into the back of an SUV where Syed was sitting.

"Today, the evidence in Adnan's case has finally led to his freedom, Suter said. "As you can imagine, it's an emotional day for him and his family. He will not be making a statement at this time, and he asks all of you for privacy so that he can start to heal. Thank you again to everyone who has believed in Adnan."  

After a 30-minute recess, Lee's brother testified he was "blindsided" by a joint motion to vacate Syed's sentence.

"This is not a podcast for me. This is real life - a never-ending nightmare for 20-plus years," Lee's brother said, referring to the "Serial" podcast that brought national attention to the case.

Lee's brother spoke during the hearing via Zoom. He had hoped to attend in person.

"I've been with this for 20-plus years. Whenever I think it's over, it always comes back," he said.

An attorney for Lee's family had said it was "outrageous" that relatives were not given the opportunity to participate in the hearing.

Steven Kelly, the attorney for Lee's family, said in a statement that her family was distressed by Monday's events.

"The Lee family is deeply disappointed that today's hearing happened so quickly and that they were denied the reasonable notice that would have permitted them to have a meaningful voice in the proceedings," he said.

Kelly agreed to represent the lee family on an emergency basis on Sunday.

The Baltimore City State's Attorney's Office said Lee's brother was notified last week and indicated he would appear on Zoom.

Phinn called for a recess so he could phone in to the hearing.

"Serial," released in 2014, raised questions about the prosecution.

Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby is asking for a new trial for Syed after newly discovered evidence revealed two other suspects could have been involved. 

"In the interest of fairness and justice, he is entitled to a new trial," Mosby said 

Lee disappeared on Jan. 13, 1999. Several weeks later, her body was found in Leakin Park. An autopsy report stated she had died from manual strangulation.  

Since the conviction, Syed has maintained that he is innocent.

According to a partner with Rosenberg Martin Greenberg, a retrial could be a "challenge," due to witnesses potentially being unavailable nearly 20 years after the incident happened. He also said the decision today is not a guarantee that Syed will be free —even if both parties come to the same request.  

"Serial" announced producer Sarah Koenig was in the courtroom for the hearing, and a new episode of the podcast will be released Tuesday.

Ava-joye Burnett contributed to this story.  

Cristina Mendez contributed to this story.