Now that State Senator Hiram Monserrate has opted for a bench trial, versus having a jury hear allegations that he assaulted his girlfriend last year, his fate is in the hands of Justice William M. Erlbaum. City Room reports that the National Organization for Women's New York chapter has been asking women to contact Erlbaum and ask him give the former turncoat Senator "to the maximum sentence allowable by law." Of course, Monserrate's lawyer is upset, claiming, "They’re trying to improperly persuade the fact finder. It’s akin to writing a letter to a juror." On the other hand, Office of Court Administration spokesman David Bookstaver points out it's not quite "akin" since Erlbaum is a public official. The judge also pointed out to Monserrate, at "in a bench trial, I wear two hats: I get to see all the evidence, even impermissible evidence," which includes the purported video of Monserrate roughly handling his girlfriend. One defense lawyer told the Post of the bench trial decision, "It's really gutsy -- but really risky. He's taking out one of the key components of a jury, and that's empathy. A judge cannot and will not be sympathetic to you, relying completely on the law." more ›

State Senator Hiram Monserrate accused NOW's NY State chapter of being "willfully malicious and mean-spirited," the Daily Politics reports. Monserrate was referring to a NOW-NYS press release, which is protesting Monserrate's position of power amid allegations that he assaulted his girlfriend; NOW-NYS had stated, "It is inexplicable that our former Governor Spitzer was forced to resign for having sex with a prostitute while Senator Monserrate is allowed to continue in a leadership position. " Monserrate complains, "To compare a situation where both adults insist an accident occurred, to Mr. Spitzer and a young lady who admitted to committing a crime, is to utter a statement maliciously," noting that NOW-NYS never contacted him or his girlfriend. The Daily Politics says (per a source) that Monserrate may consider a defamation suit against NOW-NYS, whose president Marcia Pappas says, "If Mr. Monserrate would go to this extreme to prevent my group from speaking out, what other extremes would Mr. Monserrate go to in other areas of his life?" more ›