It was Shekhar Bhatia's column in the Mint that mentioned serialpodcast.org. I was intrigued because crime has always been an interesting genre. As it is I was sick of listening to the senseless talk of the RJs and though I love songs from Golden Era there is a limit to how many times one can listen to them. So I was looking out for something meaningful to listen to during my evening walks and this bit about serialpodcast.org came as a manna from heaven. These podcasts are from the makers of This American Life and hosted by Sarah Koenig.
I downloaded first two episodes of season one. This season is about the true story of Adnan Syed, a 17-year old boy in Baltimore who was convicted of first degree murder of his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee in '99. He was sentenced to life imprisonment and has been living in a correctional facility ever since. This season is an attempt to figure out the truth. As I listened to the first few episodes I believed that by the time the season ended we would know if he really did it or not. But then as the series progressed I realized that it won't happen. For the first time in my life I realized how difficult it must be to say for certain if someone has it in him or her to kill or not. How much do we really know of anyone? Also there are so many twists and turns in a typical murder case that it seems like a wonder that they get solved at all. The crime shows on TV really do a good job of making it seem to easy but I guess that's not the real picture.
So what is my verdict - guilty or not guilty? I don't know - and that's the best that I can do. On one hand, it seems quite possible that Jay, who by all accounts was more street-smart than Adnan, framed him for the murder. Afterall, his testimony did change between the two trials, and that too on significant points. Plus he never had to do jail time. Add to it the facts that his version of the events after the murder does not fit the timeline, that Asia and Summer claim to have seen Adnan and Hay respectively after school ended that day and that the person who discovered Hay's body couldn't have just stumbled upon it by accident. If that isn't fishy, I don't know what is. But I will be damned if I know why he killed Hay in the first place - unless of course he simply wanted to get Adnan into trouble.
But then people do mention that Adnan is charming and known to have used his charm on more than one occasions to get out of tight spots. He also doesn't have clear recollection of his after-school activities on the day of the murder. I too believe that the day should have been etched in his memory given the fact that a police officer called him to inquire about his ex-girlfriend. Furthermore, he isn't mad at Jay. If he were innocent, it would have been perfectly natural for him to rant about him, isn't it? And on top of it all, what about Jay? If Adnan didn't do it, why is Jay lying?
The recent update is that the judge has called for a new trial. I must confess that I was shocked to see Adnan's recent picture. Though the podcasts did mention that he has taken to religion big time in the prison, I didn't expect to see him in the typical religious garb. It's not a politically correct thing to say, I know, but I cannot help but wonder what possible reaction his current appearance will have on the jury given the current Islamic extremism the world over.
I did download and listen to the first two episodes of the second season. It is a story of a US soldier who, one day, decided to abandon his post somewhere in Afghanistan and walk away. But I didn't find the story as appealing as the first season so I left it at that.
I downloaded first two episodes of season one. This season is about the true story of Adnan Syed, a 17-year old boy in Baltimore who was convicted of first degree murder of his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee in '99. He was sentenced to life imprisonment and has been living in a correctional facility ever since. This season is an attempt to figure out the truth. As I listened to the first few episodes I believed that by the time the season ended we would know if he really did it or not. But then as the series progressed I realized that it won't happen. For the first time in my life I realized how difficult it must be to say for certain if someone has it in him or her to kill or not. How much do we really know of anyone? Also there are so many twists and turns in a typical murder case that it seems like a wonder that they get solved at all. The crime shows on TV really do a good job of making it seem to easy but I guess that's not the real picture.
So what is my verdict - guilty or not guilty? I don't know - and that's the best that I can do. On one hand, it seems quite possible that Jay, who by all accounts was more street-smart than Adnan, framed him for the murder. Afterall, his testimony did change between the two trials, and that too on significant points. Plus he never had to do jail time. Add to it the facts that his version of the events after the murder does not fit the timeline, that Asia and Summer claim to have seen Adnan and Hay respectively after school ended that day and that the person who discovered Hay's body couldn't have just stumbled upon it by accident. If that isn't fishy, I don't know what is. But I will be damned if I know why he killed Hay in the first place - unless of course he simply wanted to get Adnan into trouble.
But then people do mention that Adnan is charming and known to have used his charm on more than one occasions to get out of tight spots. He also doesn't have clear recollection of his after-school activities on the day of the murder. I too believe that the day should have been etched in his memory given the fact that a police officer called him to inquire about his ex-girlfriend. Furthermore, he isn't mad at Jay. If he were innocent, it would have been perfectly natural for him to rant about him, isn't it? And on top of it all, what about Jay? If Adnan didn't do it, why is Jay lying?
The recent update is that the judge has called for a new trial. I must confess that I was shocked to see Adnan's recent picture. Though the podcasts did mention that he has taken to religion big time in the prison, I didn't expect to see him in the typical religious garb. It's not a politically correct thing to say, I know, but I cannot help but wonder what possible reaction his current appearance will have on the jury given the current Islamic extremism the world over.
I did download and listen to the first two episodes of the second season. It is a story of a US soldier who, one day, decided to abandon his post somewhere in Afghanistan and walk away. But I didn't find the story as appealing as the first season so I left it at that.
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