MAYVILLE, NY – The trial for Hadi Matar, 26, of New Jersey, was postponed Wednesday morning by Chautauqua County Court Judge David W. Foley, so that manuscripts related to a memoir about the August 2022 assault can be subpoenaed.
“Judge Foley postponed the trial, to a date to be determined, to afford the defense an opportunity to attempt to obtain certain materials underlying the planned publication of Mr. Salman Rushdie’s upcoming book, entitled “Knife,” in which he recounts the stabbing attack committed upon him on August 12, 2022. Any written or recorded statements concerning the attack, made by any witness, is discoverable information. In this case, the defense was aware of the planned publication since mid-October but only recently asked the Court to allow them time to attempt to obtain a copy of the manuscript by subpoena,” explained Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt while speaking to the media following the hearing.
Chautauqua County Public Defender Ned Barone, Matar’s attorney, first sought the delay during a pre-trial court appearance on Tuesday.
“A last minute adjournment of the trial is frustrating without question, since every trial presents numerous moving parts, and this one is particularly complex given security concerns and that many of the witnesses we’ve subpoena’d are located outside of and across New York State. I and my office have been prepping for trial for months now, including through the holiday season. We were ready for jury selection this upcoming Monday. To have to restart that engine several months down the road, and put this all back together again, is in my view a tremendous waste of resources for the County to absorb but I can assure the public it will not change the ultimate outcome,” continued DA Schmidt.
While the subpoena process is underway, Matar will remain in custody at the Chautauqua County Jail. Matar is charged with second-degree attempted murder and second-degree assault.
Video of District Attorney Schmidt’s press gaggle following Wednesday’s court appearance is available to view on Chautauqua County’s YouTube page and for direct download at this link: Chautauqua Attempted Murder, Assault Trial Postponed 010324
