By: Sam Moss

New York State’s Senate comprises sixty two members from places as disparate as midtown Manhattan to the North Country. One member, Hiram Monserrate, a Democrat, hails from the Senate’s Thirteenth District, which covers part of Queens.

A former Marine Corps reservist and a police officer by vocation, Monserrate first developed a reputation during his tenure as New York City Councilman for being feisty, outspoken, and willing to take on some of the most potent political forces – Michael Bloomberg included – sometimes yielding impressive results. As reported by the New York Times, Monserrate “secured a compromise from Mayor Bloomberg to maintain a longstanding policy prohibiting city employees from reporting illegal immigrants to the federal authorities” in 2003. Monserrate was initially elected to the Senate on November 4, 2008, soon thereafter becoming Chair of the Senate Consumer Protection Committee.

Arrested on December 19, 2008 on charges of stabbing his girlfriend with a shard of glass, and released on bail later that day, Monserrate was nonetheless sworn into office on January 7, 2009. While Monserrate contended his girlfriend was injured as a result of him falling on top of her with a glass in hand, his arrest prompted an investigation in which he was indicted on six counts of felony and misdemeanor assault of varying degree by a grand jury. On October 15, 2009, a jury found Monserrate guilty of misdemeanor assault and set his sentencing for December 4, 2009, whereupon a maximum sentence on one year in jail could be imposed.

Talk in Senate power circles has abounded since his verdict earlier this month and expulsion from the Senate may be in store for him. Calls for his resignation have come from prominent Democrats such as Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, with very few remaining by his side. Senate Democratic Conference Leader John Sampson, in conjunction with Senate Republican Minority leader Dean Skelos, has created a committee of five senators to review Monseratte’s past actions and recommend a course of action with regard to his continued Senate membership. If he were expelled he would be the first legislator in nearly 90 years to be dealt that punishment by his comrades. A report by that committee is now pending.