Salman Rushdie’s Alleged Assailant Won’t See Author’s Private Notes Before Trial

Salman Rushdie’s Alleged Assailant Won’t See Author’s Private Notes Before Trial
Hadi Matar, charged with stabbing author Salman Rushdie, listens during an arraignment in the Chautauqua County Courthouse in Mayville, New York on Aug. 18, 2022. Joshua Bessex/AP Photo
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MAYVILLE, N.Y.—Author Salman Rushdie does not have to turn over private notes about his stabbing to the man charged with attacking him, a judge ruled Thursday, rejecting the alleged assailant’s contention that he is entitled to the material as he prepares for trial.

Hadi Matar’s lawyers in February subpoenaed Mr. Rushdie and publisher Penguin Random House for all source material related to Mr. Rushdie’s recently published memoir: “Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder,” which details the 2022 attack at the Chautauqua Institution. Public Defender Nathaniel Barone said the material he sought contained information not available anywhere else.