Monserrate Won't Get Extra $ While Charged with Assault

Last week, Hiram Monserrate was sworn in as a State Senator. Some Republican Senators had argued he should not enter the Senate, since he was charged with beating up his girlfriend, but Monserrate has repeatedly denied the charge and his girlfriend has also said it was an accident (though speculation continues). Now there's a vague form of censure: Monserrate will not receive payments for chairing—yes, he still gets to chair—the consumer protection committee while he is still charged with assault. The annual lulu for the chair is $12,500. The Daily Politics points out that a few years ago, then minority leader David Paterson stripped State Senator Ada Smith of her perks after a "pattern of bad behavior"—and "she hadn't yet been convicted of anything at the time."