[NY] New York Senator Hiram Monserrate EXPELLED for domestic violence, over his long-winded objections

...Between his election and swearing in to office, he was charged with slashing his girlfriend Karla Giraldo's face with a broken glass and then forcibly pulling her down the hall of his Queens apartment building on the way to the hospital. Monserrate was acquitted of the more serious felony charge tied to the cutting of his girlfriend...

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[NY] After 20 face stitches, Senator-Elect, Ex-NYPD Monserrate's girlfriend Karla recants -  ...[Karla] Giraldo, who needed 20 stitches to close a gash over her eye... told cops Monserrate cut her face with a broken drinking glass after he discovered she had another man's police union card in her purse... She later said it was an accident....

..."He caused a violent act against a woman, and he doesn't belong here," said GOP Sen. Martin Golden, of Brooklyn, just before the vote. "As sad as it is, it has to be done"...

VIDEO: MONSERRATE SPEECH BEFORE THE VOTE FOR HIS EXPULSION


VIDEO FROM LAST SEPTEMBER SHOWING SNIPS OF THE INCIDENT
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STATE SENATE VOTES TO BOOT SEN. HIRAM MONSERRATE, CITING HIS MISDEMEANOR ASSAULT CONVICTION
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS ALBANY BUREAU
BY Glenn Blain and Kenneth Lovett klovett@nydailynews.com
Originally Published:Tuesday, February 9th 2010, 9:03 PM
Updated: Tuesday, February 9th 2010, 10:16 PM
[Excerpts] Embattled state Sen. Hiram Monserrate was ousted from his seat Tuesday night by colleagues who say his conviction for misdemeanor assault against his girlfriend brought shame on the chamber. Disgusted Democrats and Republicans joined together 53-8 to make Monserrate the fourth sitting state lawmaker ever expelled - and the first since 1861. "Sen. Monserrate's abusive and unlawful conduct damages the integrity of the New York state Senate and demonstrates a lack of fitness to serve in this body," Sen. Eric Schneiderman (D-Manhattan) said after the vote. Monserrate said he expects to be a senator for "many, many years" and promised an immediate legal challenge, maintaining it's up to the voters to judge him... "He caused a violent act against a woman, and he doesn't belong here," said GOP Sen. Martin Golden, of Brooklyn, just before the vote. "As sad as it is, it has to be done."... A former city cop and city councilman, Monserrate was elected to the Senate in 2007. Between his election and swearing in to office, he was charged with slashing his girlfriend Karla Giraldo's face with a broken glass and then forcibly pulling her down the hall of his Queens apartment building on the way to the hospital. Monserrate was acquitted of the more serious felony charge tied to the cutting of his girlfriend. A felony conviction would have resulted in his automatic ouster from the Senate. Marcia Pappas, head of the state's National Organization for Women, praised the Senate's action. "Anything less than expulsion was not acceptable. Any form of violence against women is not acceptable," she said. [Full article here]

NY SENATOR WHO DRAGGED GIRLFRIEND FIGHTS EXPULSION
The Associated Press, Washington Post
By Michael Virtanen
Wednesday, February 10, 2010; 3:59 AM
[Excerpts] A Democratic state senator who betrayed his colleagues by joining Republicans in a brief coup and was convicted of a misdemeanor assault charge for dragging his girlfriend around during an argument at his apartment says he'll go back to court to fight his expulsion from the Senate. The New York Senate voted 53-8 on Tuesday night to oust Sen. Hiram Monserrate, a move the lawmaker called an injustice to the people who elected him... Monserrate, of Queens, apologized for any discredit his conduct brought to the Senate, but he said Tuesday's vote was depriving voters of their right to choose a representative... Attorney Steve Hyman said he and Monserrate will file a federal lawsuit challenging his removal as soon as possible. Hyman and Monserrate said they will seek court orders preventing officials from removing him or holding a special election to replace him... Monserrate is separately appealing his criminal conviction... "The Senate cannot turn a blind eye to an act of domestic violence, a crime for which the state of New York has a zero-tolerance policy, and an attempt to evade responsibility for such a crime through dishonesty and bullying," [Sen. Eric] Schneiderman said. The committee criticized Monserrate for refusing to cooperate with its investigation... [Full article here]

LAST DECEMBER: 

NO JAIL TIME FOR MONSERRATE
New York Times
By Fernanda Santos
December 4, 2009, 1:37 pm
[Excerpts] State Senator Hiram Monserrate, a former police officer and New York City councilman, was sentenced on Friday to three years of probation and 250 hours of community service for recklessly causing physical injury to his companion by dragging her through the lobby of his Queens apartment building. Mr. Monserrate was also told to participate in a 52-week treatment program. "He doesn’t get a break. He doesn’t get a handout. He gets what any other person gets in this situation," Justice William M. Erlbaum said in delivering the sentence. Before learning his fate, Mr. Monserrate, who did not testify at his trial, apologized to his companion, Karla Giraldo, saying, "I love her very much"... Mr. Monserrate had already escaped worse punishment, though. He had been charged with two felony counts and two misdemeanor counts of assault after cutting Ms. Giraldo’s face during a bitter argument in his apartment on Dec. 19, 2008. In October, Justice Erlbaum, who presided over his trial, acquitted him on the two felony assault charges, which carried a mandatory sentence of seven years in prison and would have forced him to forfeit his Senate seat. He was convicted on a single count of misdemeanor assault, which carried a maximum of one year behind bars. He received a lighter sentence largely because he was a first-time offender. Misdemeanor convictions do not call for an automatic expulsion from the Legislature. But a Senate committee is investigating whether to censure, suspend or expel Mr. Monserrate, who has vowed not to resign. The case drew condemnation from women’s rights groups, who clamored for severe penalties against Mr. Monserrate, and state and city legislators, who demanded his resignation... Prosecutors argued that Mr. Monserrate, an ex-Marine, lashed out at Ms. Giraldo with a glass in a fit of rage after he found another man’s business card in her purse. The glass broke against her face, cutting her near her left eye down to her skull and leaving a lasting scar.... [Full article here]
[public official involved domestic violence oidv intimate partner violence (ipv) abuse safety new york state]