By Jessica Anderson
The Baltimore Sun
BALTIMORE — A Baltimore Circuit judge has denied Adnan Syed’s request to be released on bail while he awaits a new trial.
Syed, whose case gained notoriety after becoming the subject of the popular “Serial” podcast, was convicted of murder in 2000 and sentenced to life in prison. But this past June, a judge vacated his conviction and ordered a new trial, a decision that prosecutors are appealing.
Attorney, C. Justin Brown argued for Syed’s release, saying in court filings that the appeals process could take years and that Syed has shown he is good candidate for release pending a new trial.
But in an opinion released Wednesday, Judge Martin P. Welch cited the seriousness of the crime, among other factors, in denying Syed’s release.
“The circuit court finds that the nature and circumstances of the offenses are the most serious in nature and there is still compelling evidence against Petitioner,” Welch wrote.
The judge also denied Syed’s request for a hearing on his request to be released on bail.
Brown, in a statement Thursday, called the ruling “a setback,” but said “we are focused on the bigger picture of getting back to court and proving his innocence.”
Brown said Syed has unfairly spent 17 years behind bars based on an unconstitutional conviction and should be released. Brown said Syed is not a threat, given that he has not committed any violence while in prison.
“Adnan has been locked up for 17 years in some of the most dangerous places in our society yet he has not done anything violent. In fact, he has been a model prisoner,” Brown said in an interview Thursday.
Syed was convicted in 2000 for the killing of ex-girlfriend and Woodlawn High School classmate Hae Min Lee. In 2014, his case became the subject of the “Serial” podcast, which raised questions that prompted a new hearing in his case. In June, Welch ordered a new trial.