Introduction
The case of Adnan Syed has been getting a lot of attention regarding whether he is innocent or if he actually committed the murder because of the very popular podcast called “Serial.” Because of this, even though Adnan is said to be guilty, new evidence has come up, questioning why he was even convicted without proper evidence in the first place. In this blog, I will go over Adnan’s case and why he is innocent.
The Case
Hae Min Lee, a high school student, was strangled to death on January 13th, 1999, in Baltimore County, Maryland. Weeks later, her body was found, and the only suspect was Adnan Syed, her ex-boyfriend, who was sentenced to prison without any proper evidence as no one specifically remembered anything about what happened that day. After years, Sarah Koenig, the narrator of “Serial,” went on a hunt to find out if Adnan was innocent or not by investigating students, witnesses, testimonies, and whatever evidence was used in court. This all started because she received an email from Rabia Chaudry, a family friend who believes Adnan is innocent.
Lacking evidence
Both direct and indirect evidence are necessary requirements to rule someone guilty or innocent, as evidence helps us get an idea of all possible scenarios of what happened and why it may have happened. In Adnan’s case, there was no good evidence for both direct and indirect. The evidence used against him was Jay Wilds, who says he helped with the murder and confessed to what happened, and his recent breakup with Hae. Jay’s testimony was no good as he kept on saying different stuff about what happened on each of the three times he was questioned, which basically means there is a lie or lies somewhere in what he was saying, which just makes him a non-reliable source of evidence. Jay was also taking long pauses as if he were thinking of what to say next, as if he were creating a lie. Something that was troubling though, is the fact the court used it, Sarah Koenig states that “Jay’s story wasn’t just the foundation of the state’s case against Adnan, It was the state’s case against Adnan” (“Serial”). The Court ruled it as the only evidence that was needed to send Adnan to prison.
This article states that “After keeping their romance a secret due to religious and cultural differences, Hae Min Lee, 18, and Adnan Syed, 17, who were classmates at Woodlawn High School in Baltimore, break up” (Hanlon, Balagtas, Herbst). The police used this and made Adnan the number one suspect because he broke up with Hae. The police used it as evidence that he killed her because he wanted revenge. This does not make sense as to why someone would kill their ex-girlfriend because they broke up or how it could have been used as evidence if not proven. An article by Natalie Maximets states that “Typically, the average length of high-school relationships is from a few months to a year. A tiny percentage of them stay together and get married.” and that “the statistics on marrying a high school sweetheart are scarce because most people don’t contemplate marriage until they graduate”(Maximets). This just explains why it doesn’t make sense for the police to use their breaking up for evidence, as many students, teens, and young adults also break up. It is a normal thing that may happen in anyone’s life, which is exactly what happened to Adnan, a completely healthy breakup.
Asia McClain
Secondly, There was a great piece of evidence that could have proven Adnan’s innocence but, for some reason, was not even brought up, which was a letter from Asia McClain. Asia had written letters to Adnan clearly stating that she saw him on the night of the murder at the same time it supposedly happened: “”I know it’s physically impossible for people to be in two places at one time”” (Verhoeven). Asia states in her letter that “I remember chatting with you. Throughout you’re actions that day I have reason to believe in your innocence” (McClain). This letter says that Asia was with Adnan on the day of the murder. Asia, after 20 years, still says that she believes Adnan is innocent, as he was not jealous about Hae dating someone else, has not gone mental, and seems like a perfectly normal, stable person (Verhoeven).
The main question is why this evidence was not used in court in the first place. Asia even said she was okay and wanted to be a witness in Adnan’s case to prove him innocent. I believe the problem was Adnan’s Lawyer, Cristina Gutierrez. She was described as a great lawyer, but not in Adnan’s case, as explained here in this article,
“The way she cross-examined witnesses was terrible and annoying. And she asked for upfront cash payments of tens of thousands of dollars to pay experts, only to not pay them! … Adnan, even though he maintains his innocence, asked for her to cut a plea deal, twice, and she never attempted it” (Cristina Gutierrez).
It was almost like Cristina did not care what happened to Adnan, as she did not properly use the evidence she had, did not use Asia’s letter, and most importantly, did not listen to Adnan himself; she only wanted the money.
Racism Coming Into play
Racism had a significant impact on Adnan’s case, the investigations, trials, and the overall outcome. It is said in this article that “during the trial in Baltimore that culminated in his 2000 conviction, prosecutors made hundreds of references to Adnan’s race and religion, introducing him to the jury by saying, “The defendant is of Pakistani background, he’s a Muslim,” though Syed was born and raised in the U.S”” (Adnan Syed faced racial stereotypes in court). I find It very crazy how they brought race and religion to this case as they were completely unrelated, as if they were purposely trying to make a profile of him to make him look dangerous, fuel stereotypes, and help with the overall biased decision-making process. The article also gave a reason why they might use racism: “This is a pattern,” he said. “What the prosecutors try to do is make up for a lack of evidence, and they hope that fear will fill the gap” (Adnan Syed faced racial stereotypes in court). So basically, there was no evidence in Adnan’s case, as all the evidence was bad, so the state might have used his race to scare the jury to make it more believable that he was the murderer to close the case right there and then.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I truly believe that Adnan Syed is Innocent from the very start for the following three reasons, no proper evidence was found, a letter by Aisa McClain was not used even though it clearly states he was somewhere else at the time of the murder, and racism which can not be ignored as the criminal system is not working as it was intended to. By shedding light on Adnan’s case we aid other cases similar to his to bring each and every one an unbiased approach to justice.
THE CASE OF ADNAN SYED 
Leave a comment