One of the most talked about cases of the last 25 years is the 1999 homicide of 18-year-old Hae Min Lee. As detailed in HBO’s The Case Against Adnan Syed documentary (and on the popular podcast Serial), her ex-boyfriend Adnan Syed has always maintained that he had nothing to do with the crime despite being arrested and subsequently convicted of her murder.
After spending more than 20 years of his life behind bars and a series of failed appeals, on Monday, September 19, Syed was released from prison and his conviction was tossed. As reported in The Baltimore Sun, the move comes as the Baltimore State’s Attorney's Office successfully petitioned Baltimore Circuit Judge Melissa Phinn to dismiss the conviction citing the revelation of alternative suspects in the homicide that weren’t properly vetted and unreliable evidence that was used in the prosecution of the case.
AP News went on to further describe the case made against Syed wasn’t completely fair due to "flawed cellphone data, unreliable witness testimony and a potentially biased detective." As far as what happens next, the Baltimore State’s Attorney's Office has 30 days to decide whether to completely drop the charges against Syed or to try him again in court.
On October 11, the prosecutors in the case dropped the charges against Syed. According again to The Baltimore Sun, DNA tests exclude him as a viable suspect for the crime.
How to watch The Case Against Adnan Syed documentary
All four parts of The Case Against Adnan Syed are currently available to stream on HBO Max. For those looking to watch the docuseries and dive into the particulars of the case, you need a subscription to the platform. Currently, the streaming service offers a few different subscription options for customers to choose from.
As HBO Max is exclusive to the US, UK viewers interested in learning about Syed's case via the documentary can do so by streaming it on NOW TV, which is part of the Sky TV offerings.
What is The Case Against Adnan Syed about?
Here is HBO’s official synopsis of The Case Against Adnan Syed:
"The Case Against Adnan Syed explores the 1999 disappearance and murder of 18-year-old Baltimore County high school student Hae Min Lee and the subsequent conviction of her ex-boyfriend, Adnan Syed, a case brought to global attention by the hugely popular Serial podcast."
By the way, check out the trailer for the docuseries.
New episode of The Case Against Adnan Syed
According to The Hollywood Reporter, director Amy Berg will debut a brand new episode of the docuseries in 2023. The new footage includes "exclusive access" to Adnan Syed “leading up to and following his release from prison,” according to HBO.
It will more than likely also showcase how the DA came to the decision to dismiss all charges against him.
