Judge grants “Serial’s” Adnan Syed a new trial

Adnan Syed, of Serial podcast fame, has been granted a retrial in the murder case that placed him behind bars.

Brown said Thursday that the retrial was granted on the basis of “the cell tower issue” but could not elaborate as he had not yet read the full opinion.

Syed has been in prison since 2000, when he was convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend, Hae Min Lee, at the age of 17.

The podcast, hosted by Sarah Koening, examined inconsistencies in the original case.

Chaudry has written a book about Syed that is scheduled to be published in September.

Welch also rejected prosecutors’ argument that the failure to speak with a potential corroborating witness was a tactical decision on the part of Syed’s attorney.

“Petitioner’s request for a new trial is hereby granted”, Welch wrote in his order.

At trial, prosecutors argued that Syed strangled Lee after school in the parking lot of a Best Buy electronics store, jealous that she was seeing another, older man after they broke up.

Additionally, Vignarajah presented records showing that Gutierrez, as well as a team of attorneys working on Syed’s case before she signed on, was aware of Chapman but decided against calling her to the stand.

In February, Syed’s defense challenged the testimony of an AT&T engineer whose sworn statements on cellphone data were used to link Syed to the park where Lee’s body was buried.

“Serial” fans have been able to follow the post-conviction proceedings as well. The loyal army of listeners often acted as armchair detectives, uncovering new evidence and raising new questions about the case.