NY senator convicted of assault suing in federal court to block expulsion, special election

Convicted NY senator suing to block expulsion

ALBANY, N.Y. — A New York lawmaker whose colleagues voted to expel him because of a misdemeanor assault conviction is filing suit in federal court, claiming the state Senate had no right to oust him.

In a civil rights suit being filed Thursday in Manhattan, Queens Democrat Hiram Monserrate asks the court to block his expulsion and a March 16 special election to replace him. He says the Senate has denied him due process and denied his constituents their right to representation.

The Senate voted 53-8 to remove Monserrate, who was convicted last fall of dragging his girlfriend, a scene captured on surveillance cameras in his apartment building. He was acquitted of felony assault. A felony conviction would have automatically cost him the Senate seat.