Mayville, N.Y. (WBEN) - Pre-trial motion hearings have wrapped up in the case of a man accused of attacking Salman Rushdie at the Chautauqua Institution back in 2022.
Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt says attorneys for Hadi Matar made two separate motions, one to stay the trial and the other to remove the trial to a county outside of Chautauqua County.
"We've opposed the motions," said Schmidt during a press briefing on Friday. "The motions have been fully briefed. One of those motions is before the full panel of the Appellate Division, fourth department in Rochester. The other motion is before one of the justices of the Appellate Division. Each of those justices have asked for paper submissions only. There won't be any argument, and we're just awaiting a decision because they've been fully briefed."
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Schmidt anticipates introducing into evidence video recordings of the incident.
"The exhibits will generally consist of some documentary evidence, the video evidence, some still photographs. Once those exhibits get entered into evidence, they're in the possession of the court, and I don't know what the Office of Court Administration and our chief clerk's office, together with Judge [David] Foley, have determined that they will do with respect to the handling or the viewing of the evidence by media," Schmidt said.
Matar has pleaded not guilty, and faces 25 years if convicted on attempted murder. The jury selection for the trial starts Tuesday.
Matar has been held without bail since rushing the stage as Rushdie prepared to speak at the Chautauqua Institution and stabbing him more than a dozen times before being subdued by onlookers.
The “Satanic Verses” author was left blinded in one eye. The event's moderator, Henry Reese, was also wounded.
Matar has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and assault.
In a separate indictment, federal authorities allege that Matar was motivated by a terrorist organization’s endorsement of a fatwa, or edict, calling for Rushdie’s death. A separate trial on the federal charges — terrorism transcending national boundaries, providing material support to terrorists and attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization — will be scheduled in U.S. District Court in Buffalo.