In a previous blog, I had talked about the hit podcast Serial. To recap, Serial is a podcast by Sarah Koenig which talks about the controversial case of Adnan Syed who has been declared guilty of the murder of Hae Min Lee, his ex-girlfriend, on January 13, 1999. After listening to the podcast and doing some further investigation, I have compiled evidence as to why I believe Syed has been wrongfully imprisoned and how he is innocent.
My belief that Adnan was innocent stemmed from what was talked about in the first episode of Serial. Adnan’s whole trial was based off of the story that Jay Wilds told. I find this very unfair to Adnan because Jay frequently used cannabis, which Adnan recalls doing that day with Jay, which has ” ill effects on working memory” and he was asked for a story weeks after the day had happened which would be quite difficult to recall. As well, Jay’s story changed from his first interview during his second interview and again during his testimony at the second trial. In a more recent interview, Jay was questioned again about the day Adnan killed Hae and he contradicts the things he had said in the earlier interviews. This could simply be due to loss of memory or it could be Jay forgetting his lies. For example, in all 3 off the timelines shown in the photo above, Jay says in each one that Adnan told him he was gonna kill Hae either on the way to the mall or at the mall. However, in a recent interview with The Intercept_, Jay was asked ” When Adnan loaned you his car on Jan. 13, 1999, did he tell you it was because he planned on murdering Hae?” which he replied to with “No.” To read more about the interview click here. Suspicious, right?
My next point is that Asia McClain, was never contacted in the original trial of Syed’s case. If Asia was contacted back then, Syed could have had freedom for the last decade, almost two, instead of spending half his life behind bars. Asia had written a letter to Syed right after he was arrested, where she says that she saw him in the library at the time of Hae’s death. Asia even wrote a affidavit after Syed was convicted. Even now, Asia still remembers that day in the library. By overlooking this key piece of evidence, a possible alibi, Syed has had to pay for something that he may not have committed while the real killer runs free.
My final point and maybe the most important point is the fact that there is no DNA evidence linking Syed to the death of Hae. Absolutely none! There were no fingerprints or DNA belonging to Syed found on Hae’s body and in her car, reportedly where she was killed. This means that the whole case against Syed is based on Jay’s story and the fact that Syed, a teenager boy, was upset about the breakup between him and his girlfriend.
I truly believe that Adnan Syed has been wrongfully convicted of Hae Min Lee’s death due to the evidence that I talked about above. If he is innocent, the judicial system has ruined an innocent man’s life, while someone capable of murder lives freely.
Works Cited:
Considine, Austin. “’The Case Against Adnan Syed’: Finale Reveals New DNA Test Results.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 1 Apr. 2019, http://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/31/arts/television/case-against-adnan-syed-dna-hbo-finale.html.
“Episode 01: The Alibi.” Serial, serialpodcast.org/season-one/1/the-alibi.“How Marijuana Impairs Memory.” ScienceDaily, ScienceDaily, 1 Mar. 2012, http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/03/120301143424.htm.Theintercept.
“Exclusive: Jay, Key Witness from ‘Serial’ Tells His Story for First Time, Part 1.” The Intercept, 29 Dec. 2014, theintercept.com/2014/12/29/exclusive-interview-jay-wilds-star-witness-adnan-syed-serial-case-pt-1/.
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