Man accused of trying to kill Salman Rushdie is found guilty of attempted murder

MAYVILLE, N.Y. (AP) — A New Jersey man accused of repeatedly stabbing author Salman Rushdie on a New York lecture stage has been convicted of attempted murder. A jury in western New York also found 27-year-old Hadi Matar guilty of assault Friday. Matar ran onto the stage at the Chautauqua Institution where Rushdie was about to speak and stabbed him more than a dozen times before a live audience. The attack on Aug. 12, 2022, left the 77-year-old prizewinning novelist blind in one eye. Another man was injured in the attack. Rushdie was the key witness during seven days of testimony, describing in chilling detail his near fatal injuries and long and painful recovery.

Judge cancels trial for NYC Mayor Adams but leaves corruption charges intact for now

NEW YORK (AP) — A federal judge has adjourned the corruption trial for New York City Mayor Eric Adams and appointed counsel to advise him on how to handle the Justice Department’s request to drop charges against the Democrat. The order issued Friday by Judge Dale E. Ho meant he won’t decide before mid-March whether to grant the request to drop charges against the embattled mayor of the nation’s largest city. At a hearing Wednesday, a government lawyer cited an executive order by President Donald Trump as he defended the request to drop charges. Adams confirmed then that he accepted that charges could later be reinstated because he is sure of his innocence.

2 more people have been charged in the killing of a transgender man in upstate NY

CANANDAIGUA, N.Y. (AP) — Two more people have been charged with murder in the death of a transgender man who authorities say was tortured for more than a month before being killed in upstate New York. State Police said they arrested 29-year-old Kimberly Sochia and 21-year-old Thomas Eaves on Thursday and charged with them with second-degree murder. Five people were charged with second-degree murder last week in the death of Sam Nordquist. It was not clear if the pair had attorneys. Authorities said Sunday his assailants were known to each other, identified as LGBTQ+ and there was no evidence it was a hate crime.

Judge extends temporary block to huge cuts in NIH research funding

BOSTON (AP) — A federal judge is continuing to block the Trump administration’s drastic cuts in medical research funding. Scientists say the policy will endanger patients and delay new lifesaving discoveries. The new National Institutes of Health policy will strip research groups of hundreds of millions of dollars to cover so-called indirect expenses of studying Alzheimer’s, cancer, heart disease and other illnesses. The judge had issued a temporary restraining order earlier this month and extended it during a hearing Friday while deciding on a more permanent order.