Victim’s Family Wants Murder Conviction Reinstated Against Adnan Syed After He Was Released From Prison

According to NBC News Thursday, the family of a victim of murder wants the conviction against the man originally believed to have committed it reinstated.

Adnan Syed was released in September 2022 after being charged with the 1999 murder by Hae Min Lee.

But now, Lee’s family is asking appellate judges to reinstate the murder conviction against Syed, arguing that their rights were ignored when Syed was released after 23 years in prison. Lee’s death and Syed’s subsequent conviction were the subject of the popular “Serial” podcast’s first season, which raised doubts about Syed’s guilt and helped lead to his release.

Now, Lee’s family have argued that they weren’t properly notified of the September 19, 2022, hearing that resulted in Syed’s release, and only received an email about the hearing three days before it took place. Lee’s brother, Young, Submitted NBC News reports that he couldn’t travel to Maryland on such short notice because he lives and works in California. The Lee family requested an appeal court to reinstate Syed’s murder conviction on Thursday.

Syed told NBC that while he sympathizes with the family of the victim, his murder conviction shouldn’t be reinstated.

“We respect and we honor the fact that Hae’s family suffers so much, and we just wished that they could get the answers that they can have,” Syed spoke to the outlet. “We just hope that the court also recognizes that our family suffers, too.”

An attorney for Syed, Erica Suter, also stated that Lee’s family didn’t have the right to play any kind of active role in the hearing that led to Syed’s release.

“What the victim has is a right of information and a right to not be caught off-guard as to what is happening,” Suter spoke to judges. “This is not an environment in which their impact should be influencing the court’s decision.”

Baltimore City Circuit Judge Melissa Phinn decided to overturn Syed’s murder conviction in September after the popular “Serial” Podcast raised doubts about his guilt. Prosecutors revealed that there were several other suspects and concerns over the evidence against him. A yearlong investigation involving prosecutors and Suter, Syed’s attorney, discovered that authorities knew of at least one alternate suspect prior to Syed’s trial but withheld the information from his defense. Suter and prosecutors argued that this was a Brady violation.

The Sun reported that Lee was only 18 when she was strangled to death and buried at Leakin Park in Baltimore, Maryland. Syed, Lee’s ex-boyfriend who was 17 at the time of her killing, was alleged to have argued with her in a car before strangling her to death. Prosecutors alleged Syed committed the murder because he couldn’t handle Lee breaking up with him.

Syed, however, has always maintained his innocence, and his attorney argued that he may not have spent 23 years in prison if prosecutors hadn’t withheld evidence.

“If that evidence had been disclosed, perhaps Adnan would not have missed his high school graduation, or his pre-med plans, or 23 years of birthdays, holidays, family gatherings, community events, and everyday moments of joy,” Suter said.