Return to Leakin Park: 6 Intriguing Developments After “Serial”

Update: Since the release of Serial, Adnan’s family friend Rabia Chaudry has written a book about his life in prison and key evidence she thinks could set him free. Download a summary of Adnan’s Story on Worth Books, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and iTunes.

Shortly after Serial aired its final episode last December, the Innocence Project announced it would be filing a request to conduct new forensic testing. Their reasoning? Shockingly little DNA analysis occurred during the initial investigation, for one. UVA’s team of student sleuths also identified a new suspect in the case—a now-deceased convict named Ronald Lee Moore (revealed in episode 12) who is linked by authorities to two rapes and one woman’s murder.

Jay’s twisting testimony drove Serial listeners batty in 2014, especially since he refused to speak to the show on record. Shortly before the New Year, however, the elusive witness finally broke his silence. In a revealing three-part interview with Natasha Vargas-Cooper at The Intercept, Jay Wilds sounded off on everything from the mysterious tipster in episode 4 to the harassment he’s suffered by Serial fanatics. Jay also revised his notoriously shaky timeline, claiming he now helped Adnan bury Hae around midnight–hours after he originally swore they buried her.

Fresh on the heels of its interview with Jay, The Intercept published yet another Serial exclusive. On January 7, they ran the first in a two-part conversation with Kevin Urick, Maryland’s lead prosecutor in the case against Adnan Syed. Urick maintained Adnan’s guilt in the interview—dubbing it a “run-of-the-mill domestic violence murder.” He also accused the show of lazy journalism, claiming Koenig waited until the week before the finale before reaching out to his office for comment.

Serial producers were having none of Urick’s accusations. Taking to Twitter the following day, Koenig’s team maintained they made multiple calls to the prosecutor’s office well before season one began. None of their messages were returned. The counterargument concluded with a forceful tweet of journalistic integrity: “We are committed to reporting that’s comprehensive, fair, and exhaustively fact-checked.”

Asia McClain insists she was with Adnan Syed on the afternoon of Hae Min Lee’s murder, and why she was never called in as a witness remains one of Serial‘s biggest mysteries. Adnan’s current defense blames the faulty counsel of his original attorney, Cristina Gutierrez, while Urick asserts Asia invented her story to appease Adnan’s family. After Urick repeated his claims in The Intercept interview, Asia stepped forward. In an affidavit filed January 20, she rejected Urick’s accusations and confirmed that she was with Adnan at the time of Hae’s death. She also accused Urick of discouraging her participation with exaggerated claims about the state’s case.

Adnan’s legal team reportedly used Asia’s affidavit in their latest petition–and it just may have been what tipped the scales in his favor. On February 6, Maryland’s Court of Special Appeals granted Adnan a leave to appeal, meaning he gets the opportunity to convince a panel of judges he deserves a new trial. Adnan was given the appeal based on the argument that Cristina Gutierrez provided poor counsel by failing to pursue Asia McClain’s testimony. His session is scheduled for June of this year.

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Photos: Courtesy of Serial and This American Life