If true, Mr. Monserrate is doing the State Senate proud, even before taking office (Many updates, Monserrate's spin story and more post-jump):

Queens state Senator-elect Hiram Monserrate was in police custody this morning and will be charged with assaulting a woman believed to be his girlfriend, police sources said.

Monserrate, a member of the City Council who serves on its Public Safety Committee, struck the woman, Karla Giraldo, 30, near her left eye with either a bottle or broken glass, sources said.

The alleged assault occurred Thursday at her Jackson Heights home. Monserrate took Giraldo to Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New Hyde Park, where she received five stitches and was released.

The circumstances surrounding the alleged assault were not immediately clear, sources said. Monserrate is at the 105th Precinct and will be charged with felony assault, sources said.

From Newsday's Police beat guy Rocco Parascandola From the NY Times City Room post, the victim didn't want Senator-elect Monserrate arrested but that domestic assault arrests are mandatory in such circumstances.

Liz Benjamin has a review of past Monserrate-bad attention here and more of the news story here

Saturday-Sunday Updates

NY 1 has the perp walk and a reaction from "surprised" Queens residents

NY Daily News features an editorial saying he "must go" and calling him "Hiram Monster Rat".

El Diario's more restrained editorial is here

New York Magazine remembers that Mr. Monserrate was known (in part) as an an opponent of domestic violence .

Liz Benjamin has two new bits: Scott Stringer calls on Monserrate's to recuse himself presumably voluntarily from Council & Senate business. -- and a rundown on Monserrate's arraignment. The latter post includes a report of a claim by Monserrate that his girlfriend sustained her injuries when he fell while holding a water glass.

Queens County DA Richard Brown's Press release is here .

Newsday's Rocco Parascandola & Michael Frazier have good report including a hair-raising description of surveillance camera videos .

Giraldo, the sources said, tried in vain to prevent Monserrate, 41, a former city police officer, from throwing her bag down the garbage chute.

Then after the assault, she emerged from the apartment, a towel on her face, and banged on a neighbor's door for help. But the video shows Monserrate grabbing her by the arm and dragging her outside, where he put his arm around her in an attempt to make it look like they were an affectionate couple, sources said.

Liz B has Mr. Monserrate's explanation (an unfortunate accident):

While I cannot comment more at this time regarding how this accident occurred because I am now in the midst of the legal process, I would like to reiterate to my constituents and community that I have absolutely nothing to hide and all facts will become known at the
appropriate time. In the meantime, I understand everyone's concerns regarding these allegations and will answer any and all questions that I can without hindering the legal case.

I want to be very clear that this occurrence was a terribly unfortunate accident. Despite Karla's initial reticence and reluctance to go to the hospital, my sole concern was to provide her with immediate medical attention. In her distress, she insisted that she
would not go to Elmhurst Hospital.

Sunday's NY Times points to a possible problem:

The prosecution’s case has been complicated by the fact that Ms. Giraldo, 30, is now saying that it was an accident and, according to a law enforcement source, is not cooperating with prosecutors. prosecution

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Monday: Liz B. has the newest spin

Supporters of state Sen.-elect Hiram Monserrate are quietly putting a more sympathetic spin on his now-infamous confrontation with his girlfriend.

Sources say Monserrate backers have told people the outgoing city councilman was upset to discover drugs in girlfriend Karla Giraldo's purse after they attended the Queens Democratic Party's holiday dinner on Thursday.

"He has been making calls and saying, 'It's not what you hear; I'm innocent,'" one state Senate Democrat reported.

"The story his people are spinning now is that [Giraldo] had drugs in her purse and he tried to take them away from her and there was a struggle."

Liz also has some further reports about GOP efforts to use the Monserrate story to rearrange their Titanic deck chairs (accord, of course, Fred Dicker in the Post) while the NY Times surveyed Queens office-holders who were reluctant to criticize Mr. Monserrate.

Reading over this post, I realize that much of the stellar reporting here has been done by Liz Benjamin , who has been all over this story including an exquisite conversation in which Senator Martin Golden's horror at a criminal defendant in the well of the Senate is shown to have some inconsistency. When a GOP Senator (Guy V) was accused of wrong-doing, Mr. Golden was much more tolerant. Well maybe it's just a hobgoblin on small minds left over from Halloween.

Thank you, Liz. It's a yucky story all around, but your efforts have been just great.

Tuesday The Queens Times Herald has further frightening descriptions of the Monserrate surveillance video as including the Hon. Senator-Elect
pulling his girl-friend's hair.

Another report from Liz B & the Daily News: The fight between the two concerned a man who had been at the PBA party they'd just returned from.

Karla Giraldo told cops Monserrate cut her face with a broken drinking glass after he discovered she had another man's police union card in her purse, sources said.

Monserrate, a former cop, demanded to know more about the other man and why Giraldo accepted his Patrolmen's Benevolent Association card, a perk usually given to close friends or family, sources said.

"He was jealous. It was in her purse. He didn't like her explanations, and it got nasty," a law enforcement source said.

Need even more? Read this NY Post story

State Sen.-elect Hiram Monserrate flew into a rage and slashed his girlfriend in the face with a piece of broken glass because he believed the business card he spotted in her bag belonged to an ex-boyfriend, sources said.

Investigators found the card at the bottom of the garbage chute in Monserrate's Jackson Heights apartment building after he was caught on surveillance video trying to toss her bag in the trash, the sources said.

Liz tells of State Senator Eric Adams also an ex-cop rushing to the defense of Mr. Monserrate on the grounds that the police are out to get Mr. M because he's a reformer (Is he?)

"It is well known that Councilman Monserrate has been an outspoken advocate for police reform. I believe his role as an agent for change cause him to be denied his rights and a thorough investigation.”

I am, as it happens, a fan of the use by elected officials of discretionary money which often is put to good use. However, now and again signs emerge that there's something rotten about the practice. For example, via the Queens Tribune, An advocate who opposes domestic violence and who got $37,000 from Monserrate has been reduced to uttering utter nonsense about Mr. Monserrate Martha Flores-Vasquez, the head of an ant- violence program, for example, came forward:

“Vasquez, whose group received $37,500 through a City Council grant sponsored by Monserrate, claimed she had spoken Giraldo’s family after the arrest during Monday’s emotional rally. The family insisted the injuries were accidental, according to Vasquez.

“Hiram Monserrate has an innate sense of nonviolence,” Vasquez said. “His demeanor does not constitute violence. He is an advocate for women who are victims of domestic violence”

Excuse me? An innate sense of nonviolence? He may be a wonderful guy, but this sort flackery only thinly covers the ground.

Two other clips of from Queens local press: From the Queens Gazette . and a a recap of some of Mr. Monserrate's past brushes with the dark side