Annapolis, Maryland-a judge of Maryland formally sentenced Adnan Syed on Friday for the moment he has already served in prison, finally seeming to close a long-standing case with numerous legal turns and turns that received worldwide “serial” long data podcast.
Judge Jennifer Schiffer had already decided that Syed would remain free in a written decision last week, despite the fact that her conviction for the murder of her ex -girlfriend in 1999 when they were in high school still stay.
Syed’s judgment was modified under a relatively new state law that provides a way to free people convicted of crimes committed when they were minors. Modified sentence includes five years of supervised probation.
At a brief audience in Baltimore, Schiffer slightly modified his test conditions to allow him to travel to Washington, DC and Virginia, without looking for a specific permission from a probation agent. Syed, 43, has a job in the Prison and Justice initiative of the University of Georgetown. It also has family in Virginia.
Syed’s lawyer Erica Suter requested probation without supervision at the hearing, but the judge decided not to go so far.
“I am aware that Mr. Syed requested a non -supervised probation, but given the relief that this court has already granted to these extraordinarily serious and tragic charges, I think I have shown more consideration than anyone could have expected,” said Schiffer.
The judge’s ruling followed a February hearing that included Syed’s emotional testimony and relatives of the victim, Hae Min Lee, who was strangled and buried in a shallow tomb in a Baltimore park.
Both prosecutors and defense lawyers told Schiffer that Syed does not represent a risk for public security. The judge reminded Syed, who saw the procedures of Friday online, that his suspended sentence is still coming by him. He was sentenced in 2000 to life imprisonment plus 30 years for first -degree murder and other positions.
“I hope Mr. Syed and I trust, that this is the last time we see each other,” Schiffer said. “Otherwise, I don’t have to tell you the amount of time that is hanging on your head.”
Syed, who was 17 when Lee was killed and maintained his innocence, was released from prison in 2022 after Baltimore prosecutors said they had discovered problems with the case and moved to vacate their sentence, which was later reinstalled in appeal.
Lee’s family and his lawyer said the old wounds were open when Syed’s conviction was unemployed by the prosecutor of a former state. Later, the family managed to restore the sentence after challenging the ruling for procedural reasons, arguing that they did not receive adequate notice to attend the audience that released from prison, where they participated only through a video connection.
David Sanford, lawyer of Lee’s family, said that Friday’s audience “has the long Syed Saga saga.” He said that the family was grateful to the Court for giving them “due respect throughout these procedures, which allowed us to completely discuss the victim’s position to the court.
“The family also thanks Maryland’s Supreme Court for its historical decision in this case, which gives previously consecrated particular rights generally enshrined in the constitution of Maryland’s state,” said Sanford. “As a result, victims now have the right to be heard, the right to be present and the right to participate significantly in criminal justice procedures.”
The current prosecutor of the state of Baltimore, Ivan Bates, who publicly raised doubts about the integrity of the conviction before becoming the main prosecutor of the city, he said last month that his office believes in the jury’s verdict and has no plans to continue investigating the case.
