(This morning, The New Agenda issued the following press release on NY State Senator Hiram Monserrate, who continues to serve despite being indicted of slashing his girlfriends face. For those of you new to our website, you can read the full story here.)

For Immediate Release

New York State Senators: When You Roll with Dogs, You Get Fleas!

The New Agenda, a national organization dedicated to improving the lives of women and girls, declared the New York Senate wholly deserving of the extraordinary mess they find themselves in after Senator Hiram Monserrate extends his bullying antics for a second week.

“There’s an old adage: you roll with dogs, you get fleas. Well the Senators of both parties are sure scratching now!” said The New Agenda co-founder Amy Siskind.
Siskind called on the New York State Senate to muster the courage to do what they didn’t after Sen. Monserrate was indicted in February for slashing his girlfriend’s face with a broken glass. “Fire him immediately,” Siskind said. “Monserrate has demonstrated that he is a shameless bully in politics and in his relationships with women. What further proof do you need that he is not fit to serve the state of New York?”

In March, a grand jury in Queens indicted Monserrate on three counts of second-degree felony assault and three counts of third-degree misdemeanor assault. He faces seven years in prison on the most serious of the charges. If Monserrate is convicted of a felony, he would be barred from office.

Siskind noted that Monserrate’s party-switching antics over the last few weeks should provide ample reason among both parties to collectively demand that New York State Senator Hiram Monserrate step down immediately.

“The voters of New York and the women of this country deserve better. It is high time that each and each and every New York State Senator put partisanship aside and join together to demand that Senator Monserrate step down immediately. The New York State Voters are watching closely, and now so is the rest of the country.”

Monserrate’s alleged assault of his girlfriend was captured by at least four security cameras in the Jackson Heights apartment building where the incident allegedly occurred. The cameras recorded Monserrate allegedly yelling at his girlfriend and pulling his girlfriend down the stairs. Another camera recorded the girlfriend frantically knocking on her neighbor’s door. Finally, a camera recorded Monserrate grabbing his girlfriend’s arm and dragging her out of the apartment building as she tries to hold on to the door. At the hospital, Monserrate’s girlfriend was given 20 to 25 stitches above the eye for a cut made by a broken glass.