Appeals court reinstates Adnan Syed’s murder conviction

An appeals court in Maryland on Tuesday reinstated the conviction and life sentence of Adnan Syed in the 1999 murder of Hai Min Lee because her family wasn’t given ample notice to attend the hearing overturning the case.

Syed, 41, served 23 years in prison for the slaying of his former girlfriend and high school classmate Lee, 18. Hit podcast “Serial” did a deep dive into Syed’s case and raised questions about whether he was the true killer — eventually leading to the conviction getting tossed in September.

But Lee’s brother, Young Lee, appealed the decision and demanded the conviction be reinstated, calling for a new hearing in Syed’s case on the grounds that the family’s rights were violated when the state failed to give them proper notice of the hearing last fall.

The Appellate Court in Maryland sided with Young Lee, reinstating the conviction and sentence against Syed until a new hearing on the state’s motion to vacate the case could be held where Lee’s family has the opportunity to attend.

“Because the circuit court violated Mr. Lee’s right to notice of, and his right to attend, the hearing on the State’s motion to vacate … this Court has the power and obligation to remedy those violations, as long we can do so without violating Mr. Syed’s right to be free from double jeopardy,” the 2-1 decision reads.

Young attended the Sept. 19 hearing from California via Zoom, claiming he only found out about it three days prior through email.

“We remand for a new, legally compliant, and transparent hearing on the motion to vacate, where Mr. Lee is given notice of the hearing that is sufficient to allow him to attend in person,” the appellate court wrote.

Lee’s body was discovered partially buried in Baltimore’s Leakin Park on Feb. 9, 1999, nearly a month after she went missing after school.

Syed, then 17, was arrested on Feb. 18 and was sentenced to life in prison plus 30 years.

“Serial” — which came out in 2014 — featured prison interviews with Syed professing his innocence. Lee’s family has maintained that Syed was the culprit.