Sir Salman Rushdie’s stabber was today found guilty of attempted murder, three years after attacking the author during an onstage lecture. The assailant, 27-year-old Hadi Matar, was charged after an eight day trial. He launched his attempt at the Chautauqua Institution in western New York, where 77-year-old Rushdie was about to publicly speak. He stabbed the author 15 times in the right eye, chest, hand, neck, and stomach, leaving Rushdie to fear that he was dying. During the trial, Rushdie recalled blood pouring from his open wounds, and Matar “hitting and slashing” him. The Indian-born British American writer was left partially blind and paralyzed in his hand. Matar, however, pled not guilty, and his attorney argued that the prosecution wasn’t able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he intended to kill Rushdie. But the jury deliberated quickly before announcing a guilty verdict and Matar now faces more than 30 years in prison. Rushdie has detailed the incident in a memoir titled Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder. He’s also critically-acclaimed for writing famous fantasy novels such as Haroun and the Sea of Stories and The Satanic Verses.
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