Adnan Syed Will Not Return to Prison, Judge Rules

U.S.|Adnan Syed Will Not Return to Prison, Judge Rules

Adnan Syed will not return to prison after prosecutors in Baltimore withdrew a motion last week to vacate his murder conviction despite efforts to clear his record, a Maryland judge ruled on Thursday.

The case has gone back and forth since it became the subject of widespread attention in 2014, when the podcast “Serial” raised questions about the investigation into the 1999 killing of Hae Min Lee, 18.

Judge Jennifer Schiffer of Baltimore City Circuit Court said in her decision that Mr. Syed “is not a danger to the public” and that “the interests of justice will be better served by a reduced sentence” of time served. Mr. Syed will enter a period of five years of “supervised probation,” according to the court filing.

Mr. Syed was 17 when he was found guilty in 2000 of killing Ms. Lee, his former high school girlfriend, and sentenced to life in prison. He was released in 2022 after a Baltimore City Circuit Court judge vacated the conviction, but it was reinstated in 2023. In 2024, the Maryland Supreme Court ordered the trial court to redo the hearing that freed Mr. Syed.

After the state’s attorney said on Feb. 25 that the conviction would remain in place, Mr. Syed spoke at a hearing on Feb. 26 at the Circuit Court for Baltimore City.

“Your honor, I humbly ask that you continue to allow me to be with my family and friends as I have been the past two and a half years,” he said. “I humbly request to remain free so I can continue to contribute to society and build a meaningful life outside of incarceration.”