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Adnan Syed: document casts doubt on case against Serial convict, lawyer says | Adnan Syed: document casts doubt on case against Serial convict, lawyer says |
(about 5 hours later) | |
A rediscovered document could undermine key cellphone evidence in the case against Adnan Syed, an attorney has claimed. Syed’s conviction for the murder of Hae Min Lee was the subject of the popular podcast Serial. | A rediscovered document could undermine key cellphone evidence in the case against Adnan Syed, an attorney has claimed. Syed’s conviction for the murder of Hae Min Lee was the subject of the popular podcast Serial. |
In 2000, prosecutors used cellphone tower evidence to bolster testimony against Syed, arguing that call records put him near the park where Lee, his ex-girlfriend, was buried. | In 2000, prosecutors used cellphone tower evidence to bolster testimony against Syed, arguing that call records put him near the park where Lee, his ex-girlfriend, was buried. |
Syed is serving a life sentence. Lee went missing after classes on 13 January 1999. Her body was found in Leakin Park in Baltimore, Maryland. Jay Wilds, a classmate, said he helped Syed bury the body and was able to direct police to Lee’s missing car. | Syed is serving a life sentence. Lee went missing after classes on 13 January 1999. Her body was found in Leakin Park in Baltimore, Maryland. Jay Wilds, a classmate, said he helped Syed bury the body and was able to direct police to Lee’s missing car. |
On Monday Syed’s attorney, C Justin Brown, filed a motion in court that said a newly introduced document showed “the cell tower evidence was misleading and should have never been admitted at trial”. | On Monday Syed’s attorney, C Justin Brown, filed a motion in court that said a newly introduced document showed “the cell tower evidence was misleading and should have never been admitted at trial”. |
The document, a cover sheet from AT&T for a fax of Syed’s phone records, includes a warning that emphasizes: “Outgoing calls only are reliable for location status. Any incoming calls will NOT be considered reliable information.” | The document, a cover sheet from AT&T for a fax of Syed’s phone records, includes a warning that emphasizes: “Outgoing calls only are reliable for location status. Any incoming calls will NOT be considered reliable information.” |
Brown wrote in the motion: “Despite this unambiguous warning, the state presented at trial evidence of incoming calls to determine location and used this to convict Syed.” | Brown wrote in the motion: “Despite this unambiguous warning, the state presented at trial evidence of incoming calls to determine location and used this to convict Syed.” |
On Monday, Brown told the Guardian: “We feel that the fax cover sheet from AT&T is an extremely important piece of evidence and we are bringing it to the court’s attention as quickly as possible. We hope the court considers it.” | On Monday, Brown told the Guardian: “We feel that the fax cover sheet from AT&T is an extremely important piece of evidence and we are bringing it to the court’s attention as quickly as possible. We hope the court considers it.” |
Brown argues in the motion that a prosecutor’s “misuse” of the cellphone data and the failure of Syed’s original lawyer to question the evidence at trial support Syed’s petition to reopen court proceedings. | Brown argues in the motion that a prosecutor’s “misuse” of the cellphone data and the failure of Syed’s original lawyer to question the evidence at trial support Syed’s petition to reopen court proceedings. |
Wilds’s testimony and the cellphone tower records were central to the case against Syed, according to his attorney. Brown argues that the court should consider the fax cover letter and also allow the testimony of Asia McClain, a former classmate who said she remembered seeing Syed at a library at the suspected time of the murder. | Wilds’s testimony and the cellphone tower records were central to the case against Syed, according to his attorney. Brown argues that the court should consider the fax cover letter and also allow the testimony of Asia McClain, a former classmate who said she remembered seeing Syed at a library at the suspected time of the murder. |
The Maryland attorney general’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. | The Maryland attorney general’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. |
Syed is now 35. His appeals stalled for years until February, when the court of special appeals agreed to hear his request for a new trial. In May that court granted his request to have McClain testify on the record. | Syed is now 35. His appeals stalled for years until February, when the court of special appeals agreed to hear his request for a new trial. In May that court granted his request to have McClain testify on the record. |
In the motion, Brown blamed Syed’s original attorney, Cristina Gutierrez, for failing to bring up the document. | In the motion, Brown blamed Syed’s original attorney, Cristina Gutierrez, for failing to bring up the document. |
“She failed to cross-examine the state’s expert about it; and she failed to present the evidence to the jury,” he wrote. “There is no imaginable way this could have been a strategic choice. It was human error.” | |
Gutierrez – who died in 2004 – did not interview McClain, an omission which, with the AT&T warning, constitutes grounds for reopening the case, Brown says. | Gutierrez – who died in 2004 – did not interview McClain, an omission which, with the AT&T warning, constitutes grounds for reopening the case, Brown says. |
“It would be a miscarriage of justice,” Brown concluded, “to allow Syed’s conviction to stand when this evidence was used to obtain the conviction.” | “It would be a miscarriage of justice,” Brown concluded, “to allow Syed’s conviction to stand when this evidence was used to obtain the conviction.” |
The Serial podcast raised questions about Syed’s case last year, as its host and researchers investigated inconsistencies and contradictions in the evidence and statements of Syed, Wilds and others. Serial eventually broke records for podcast downloads. | The Serial podcast raised questions about Syed’s case last year, as its host and researchers investigated inconsistencies and contradictions in the evidence and statements of Syed, Wilds and others. Serial eventually broke records for podcast downloads. |
The court is now deliberating over whether to reopen Syed’s case, and has given Maryland until 8 September to respond to his motion. | The court is now deliberating over whether to reopen Syed’s case, and has given Maryland until 8 September to respond to his motion. |