Yesterday, State Senator Hiram Monserrate told reporters, "Sen. Monserrate is innocent, and I will not be resigning, thank you," after news that he was indicted on felony assault charges for allegedly hitting his girlfriend with a broken glass. However, Monserrate (D-Queens), who was sworn in as State Senator earlier this year, was suspended from chairing the Consumer Affairs Committee.
Last December, Monserrate, a former cop, was arrested after hospital workers treated his girlfriend Karla Giraldo for a black eye and a cut that required 20 stitches to close. Giraldo initially said that Monserrate hit her, but then said the lawmaker's story—that he accidentally hit her when he tripped while carrying a glass of water—was true (she continues to maintain that Monserrate did not assault her). But the Queens DA's office and police continued their investigation and claim that surveillance tapes and other evidence suggest Monserrate was involved.
Apparently a grand jury agreed, and the NY Times says it "voted the three second-degree assault counts to include charges under three different theories: that he assaulted Ms. Giraldo with intent to cause serious physical injury; that he assaulted her with a dangerous instrument, the glass, with intent to cause physical injury; and that he recklessly caused serious physical injury with a dangerous instrument." You can read the indictment (PDF).
Monserrate's lawyer said, "Sen. Monserrate is an innocent man who is being abused by a grand-jury process." Still, Republican Senator Marty Golden has been calling for Monserrate to step down, "If we're going to protect people that would abuse women and abuse anybody in this fashion, there is something wrong with that."
