Almost nine months after the arrest of State Senator Hiram Monserrate on assault charges, his trial got under way.
However, in a surprise move, Monserrate waived his right to have his fate decided by a jury of his peers and will instead let Queens Supreme Court Justice William Erlbaum weigh the evidence.
Monserrate’s attorney, Joseph Tacopina, told reporters that he felt the senator would not get a fair trial and pointed to domestic violence protesters out on the street.
“We want this case judged fairly and impartially,” Tacopina said outside court. “Having all these potential jurors coming in, seeing signs, just ramps up the intensity. We want to take intensity out of the mix.”
According to Steve Singer, co-chair of the criminal bar section of the Queens County Bar Association and former president of the Queens County Bar Association, an attorney usually has three major reasons why he may suggest to his client that he waive his right to a jury and go with a bench trial.
Singer said that when a decision in a trial is based on issues of law, that is, by the interpretation of the law versus evidence and questions of fact, a defendant may choose to opt for a judge.
“A jury is a group of lay people and sometimes the jury negates the law in favor of the defendant,” he said. He also added that jury decisions are not easily reviewable by an appellate court.
A second reason to waive a jury trial arises when a defendant feels that there is no chance of finding a group of 12 individuals not already prejudiced against you in the community and a change of venue, or court, is not possible.
Finally, Singer said that there are times when the prosecutors and the defense will meet with the judge in pre-trial conference and the defense attorney will feel a judge may find the defendant guilty of a lesser charge.
“There are many legitimate occasions to go non-jury and if you look at all the factors this might be something you might want to do,” said Singer, who added that he was unfamiliar with the issues and facts of this trial and so declined to opine on Tacopina’s strategy.
Monserrate’s charges stem from an altercation he allegedly had with his girlfriend Karla Giraldo, 30, during the early morning hours of December 19, 2008. According to the police complaint, after an argument Monserrate allegedly struck Giraldo in the face with a piece of glass that left her with a black eye and lacerations that needed 20 stitches.
At his arraignment on March 27, 2009, Judge Erlbaum, renewed an order of protection against Monserrate, which banned all forms of communication between the couple until December 1, 2009, the legislator and his girlfriend had requested to have the order removed.
On July 30, Erlbaum denied Monserrate’s request to dismiss the indictment and admitted to two key pieces of evidence – testimony that Giraldo had given medical personal at the hospital and a video tape recording that, according to prosecutors, had footage of Monserrate dragging a bleeding Giraldo in the stairwell of his building.
The Queens County District Attorney’s Office said that “Justice Erlbaum is a fair, experienced and impartial jurist.”
“We have full confidence he will render a just verdict based of the facts of the case after hearing all of the evidence,” said Kevin Ryan, a spokesperson for Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown.
Throughout, Monserrate has proclaimed his innocence.
“From the beginning Karla said this was an accident and that’s what is was,” Monserrate said outside the courtroom.
