Adnan Syed, the focus of the first Serial podcast back in 2014, has been granted a retrial for the alleged murder of his ex-girlfriend.

Syed's defence lawyers argued in February that his original trial lawyer, Maria Cristina Gutierrez, had failed to cross-examine the state's "cell tower expert" about the reliability of tracking someone's location via cellular network masts. Syed's defence team also presented new evidence, including testimony from Asia McClain, an alibi who said she was chatting with Syed in a library at the time of the crime.

On Thursday, June 30, judge Martin Welch agreed with the defence lawyers and ordered a new trial. In a memo seen by the New York Times, Welch said that Gutierrez failing to question the cell tower expert witness “created a substantial possibility that the result of the trial was fundamentally unreliable.”

In the same memo, Welch said that his decision had not been affected by the substantial public interest in the case: “Regardless of the public interest surrounding this case, the court used its best efforts to address the merits of petitioner’s petition for postconviction relief like it would in any other case that comes before the court; unfettered by sympathy, prejudice, or public opinion."

Syed, who was convicted of the murder way back in 2000, has always maintained his innocence. He had exhausted all other avenues of appeal; a retrial was the only way out. At a news conference in Baltimore following the judge's retrial order, C. Justin Brown, Syed's lawyer, said: “I’m feeling pretty confident right now. This was the biggest hurdle. It’s really hard to get a new trial."

The Maryland attorney general's office said in a statement that it would continue “to defend what it believes is a valid conviction.”

The Serial podcast, if you haven't listened to it, is well worth your time. The first season dealt with the murder of Hae Min Lee and the gnarly circumstances that led to Syed being arrested and convicted. The second season, which has just concluded, focuses on American soldier Bowe Bergdahl, who was captured by the Taliban in 2009.