Family friend expresses outrage after court reinstates Adnan Syed's conviction

BALTIMORE — The Appellate Court of Maryland ruled Tuesday to reinstate Adnan Syed's murder conviction and sentence in the death of Hae Min Lee. Wednesday morning, Rabia Chaudry, a family friend of Syed, went live on Instagram for about 27 minutes to discuss the ruling and express her anger.

"I have been fueled by rage for a long time and I'm angry," Chaudry said. "I'm not stressed. I'm angry because this is [expletive]." 

Syed spent more than 20 years behind bars for the murder of his ex-girlfriend, Hae Min Lee, whose case gained national attention as the subject of the podcast "Serial" in 2014.

In October, Baltimore prosecutors dropped all charges against Syed, who was then released from prison in September. However, in January, Lee's brother filed a motion arguing that prosecutors infringed upon Maryland victim's rights and the short notice he received ahead of the hearing. 

Lee's family attorney said the Baltimore City State's Attorney's Office gave his client, who lives in California, less than one business day's notice for the hearing.

Chaudry commented on the reinstatement of charges.

"They reinstated charges," she said. "It's not like he's been re-indicted or re-convicted. The court just decided that what Marilyn Mosby did just never even happened." 

Former Baltimore City State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby released a statement saying her office notified Lee's family in line with Maryland law and best practices and that they attended the hearing virtually and spoke. Mosby also stated that sending the case back to court prolongs the pain for the Lee family and leaves a cloud over a man who deserves to be free, Adnan Syed.

According to the ruling, the court cannot immediately send Syed back to prison, and a 60-day stay of its ruling has been issued to give both sides time to consider next steps.