Adnan Syed: Is He Guilty?

The case against Adnan Syed is a very finicky thing because even 20 years after the murder, people are still arguing over whether he is guilty or innocent. Here is a timeline of the case: https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/film-tv/a26721305/adnan-syed-case-trial-timeline/

The case can be looked at in two different ways. People believe that he is guilty because Jay Wild’s testimony lines up really well with the cellphone records they were able to remove from his phone that was in his car with Jay. there is also the fact that although he was an honors student, an EMT, he was on sports teams and he was active in his religion, he also smoked and drank, both things that are banned due to his religion plus his relationship with Hae Min Lee was a big no-no with his parents. But if you look at it from the other way, there is no physical evidence that he was at the scene and Jay kept changing his story so the people believed that his story was prompted by the police to line up with the cellphone records. Also, his friends and nothing but good things to say about him. The only thing that I’m not sure where to put was Asia McClain’s letters that could’ve been an alibi because they god dismissed by the defense attorney yet she also somehow remembered that day 20 years later even though she forgot about the case after she was never called in as a witness.

I don’t really have an opinion on the case and whether or not he was guilty or innocent but if I had to chose I would say that he’s innocent because I believe that people are innocent till proven guilty and there is no hard evidence that puts him at the scene of the crime. Also, Jay’s testimony seems very flimsy because he kept changing it all of the time. There was also a possible alibi that they had disregarded that could’ve possibly been the tipping point in whether he is guilty or innocent. My opinion isn’t really strong and it’s based more on facts than emotion because I wasn’t there. I didn’t know anybody in the case. I have no reason to have a strong opinion of what happened.

I’ve read many different theories about who could’ve killed Hae Min Lee. Whether it’s Jay, one of her other ex-boyfriends, other completely unrelated murderers, the person who found the body, and many others, I think it still remains a mystery on who had killed Hae Min Lee because they have no hard evidence on Adnan Syed, just verbal. So, I do think that there could’ve been a different culprit or another culprit, but unless there is other evidence, I foresee Adnan staying in jail for a crime he may or may not have committed.

Links about the case below: https://serialpodcast.org/season-one https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8425310/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Hae_Min_Lee https://www.biography.com/crime-figure/adnan-syed

Dickson, EJ. “Rolling Stone.” Rolling Stone, 8 Mar. 2019, http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/adnan-syeds-serial-conviction-reinstated-appeals-court-805493/.

Dibdin, Emma. “Harper’s Bazaar.” Harper’s Bazaar, 31 Mar. 2019, http://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/film-tv/a26721305/adnan-syed-case-trial-timeline/.

Biography.com Editors. “The Biography.” The Biography, 21 Mar. 2019, http://www.biography.com/crime-figure/adnan-syed.

“Euro Posters.” Euro Posters, http://www.europosters.eu/who-did-it-murder-crime-scene-suspect-chalk-outline-illustration-f114951869.