BALTIMORE — Adnan Syed, whose case amassed a worldwide following of “Serial” podcast listeners, will remain free — even though his murder conviction still stands, a Baltimore judge ruled on Thursday.

Judge Jennifer Schiffer agreed to reduce Syed’s sentence to time served under a relatively new state law that provides a pathway to release for people convicted of crimes committed when they were minors. The judge ruled that he will be on supervised probation for five years.

“After considering the entire record, the court concludes that the Defendant is not a danger to the public and that the interests of justice will be better served by a reduced sentence,” Schiffer wrote in the decision.

The judge’s ruling followed a hearing last week that included emotional testimony from Syed and relatives of the victim, Hae Min Lee, who was strangled and buried in a shallow grave in a Baltimore park in 1999.

Both prosecutors and defense attorneys told Schiffer that Syed, now 43, doesn’t pose a risk to public safety. Lee’s brother and mother urged the judge to uphold his life sentence.

Syed, who has maintained his innocence, was released from prison in 2022 after Baltimore prosecutors said they had uncovered problems with the case and moved to vacate his conviction, which was later reinstated on appeal. Since his release, he’s been working at Georgetown University’s Prisons and Justice Initiative and caring for aging family members.

The judge noted in her ruling that Syed’s behavior after his release gave her confidence he has achieved “the maturity and fitness required for a crime-free life outside of prison,” Schiffer wrote.

Erica Suter, an attorney who represented Syed, said his legal counsel was “focused on the joy and relief of this decision,” adding that Syed was grateful the judge reduced his sentence.

“Given his accomplishments in prison and his work in the community since release, he was a model candidate for a sentence reduction,” Suter said. “Adnan is committed to continuing to be a productive member of his community and living a life centered around his family.”

David Sanford, an attorney for Lee’s family, said in a statement after the ruling that the state last week acknowledged it had previously presented false and misleading information during former Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby’s tenure to the court in support of releasing Syed.