Dr Adam Towler says there is no need for Chanz Maximen, who stabbed him nine times, to apologise.
Image source, PA Media
A doctor stabbed nine times by a stranger has said he “is not angry” with his attacker.
Dr Adam Towler was dragged from his house and attacked by Chanz Maximen in Clifton, Bristol, in 2019.
At the end of Maximen’s trial, Dr Towler read out a witness impact statement saying: “I don’t think you owe me an apology.”
Maximen, now 19, was jailed for life at Bristol Crown Court this week for that attack and two others.
Maximen, from Sea Mills, was 17 when he chose Dr Towler at random and left him bleeding in the street in October 2019.
The trial heard Dr Towler initially thought it was a Halloween prank when Maximen knocked on his door, but he was then dragged into the street and stabbed multiple times.
Image source, Avon and Somerset Police
One blow missed his heart by two centimetres before Maximen left and his victim managed to crawl back inside.
During Dr Towler’s 999 call Maximen could be heard throwing himself against the door to try and get back in.
A former trauma specialist, Dr Towler said: “When I was struggling to get help, with a previous background in trauma, I was thinking, did (the knife) get this, or did it get that.
“My breathing was getting worse and that was probably the most scary part of the whole event.”
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In his witness statement to the court Dr Towler said he felt a “sense of connection” with Maximen.
He added: “I feel bad that I had this great freedom but you didn’t. I wondered if you had just made a mistake, albeit a big one, or been unlucky.”
Talking further on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Friday, Dr Towler elaborated by saying: “I got lucky, I’m living a quite normal life, a comfortable life. My immediate outlook is rather more comfortable than Chanz Maximen’s position.
“One of the things about this is the randomness,” Dr Towler added.
“No-one knows what he [Maximen] thought, what he does think. No-one knows if he’ll ever be judged safe to return to society. But his whole life turned on that event.
“Prior to that there was no mental history, he was on a good course. And that may be difficult for him”
Image source, Avon and Somerset Police
During the unprovoked attack, Maximen had said “you killed the girl”, a phrase that has never been explained and that meant nothing to the victim or investigators.
“Neither of us can unwind the clock on those events so now I have the rest of my life before me and he does too. I know it’s difficult for his family who’ve supported him with great tenacity and loyalty through the legal process,” added Dr Towler.
In his victim statement, he expressed concern for the defendant and his future.
Judge praises response
A jury found Maximen, who also stabbed a man walking home from a night shift and also tried to break into the house of a young woman, guilty of attempted murder, GBH and three counts of possessing a bladed article.
Jailing him for life with a minimum term of 12 years on Wednesday, Judge William Hart praised Dr Towler’s response to the disturbing attack, saying: “Whether it is the effect of intellect, or faith, or kindness and understanding, I don’t know.
“If it is the consequence of intellect, I admire it. If it is the consequence of faith, I envy it.”
Speaking of his approach on BBC Radio 4, Towler said: “If (my approach) stimulates a thought in some other people, perhaps gives them some tools to think differently about a difficult situation they’re experiencing, then that’s cool.
“I think in these situations, there’s no right, so go with it.”
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- 23 October 2020
