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State Senator Eric Schneiderman has been picked to chair the committee overseeing the State Senate's inquiry into the conduct of Queens Senator Hiram Monserrate. On Oct. 15, to the dismay of many, Monserrate was found not guilty of felony assault in the Dec. 2008 slashing of his girlfriend, Karla Giraldo, with a broken water glass. 
A guilty verdict in that charge would have required Monserrate to step down from his senate seat. He was, however, found guilty of a lesser charge, misdemeanor assault.
According to a release from the Democratic majority in the senate, "The Committee will examine precedent, Senate Rules, and all relevant law to establish the proper procedures and identify the remedies available to the Senate.
The Committee will also conduct an expeditious review of the facts and relevant evidence, as well as the potential options available under applicable law to respond to this matter. Following the completion of its investigation, the committee will report back to the Senate with its recommendations."
Lilliam Perez, Schneiderman's local chief of staff said the next step for the nine member committee is to meet and come up with its rules, and the full senate has to pass a resolution establishing the committee's powers.
Schneiderman, a lawyer, has not voiced an opinion on the Monserrate case, before or after the trial.
"In the beginning he always said: ‘let it go through the legal process,'" Perez said.
Schneiderman did not release a statement after the Monserrate verdict, she said, because he was "immediately asked to help with the next step" the senate might take.
She expects that the local district office will be helping with the investigation.
Schneiderman has been active in supporting the victims of domestic violence.
Just recently he granted the Dominican Women's Conference $75,000 for victims' services. That amount comes on top of the $80,000 he provides to the conference annually. The Manhattan Times is the bilingual newspaper of Washington Heights and Inwood.
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