By Samuel Newhouse
Brooklyn Daily Eagle
And Michael Gormley
Associated Press

JAY STREET — State Senator Kevin Parker appeared in Brooklyn Supreme Court Thursday for a pretrial hearing on charges of assaulting a newspaper photographer in a fit of anger.

Sen. Parker (D-Brooklyn) appeared before Kings County Supreme Court Justice Neil Jon Firetog to face charges of assault, criminal mischief, menacing and harassment. He could face up to seven years in prison.

Sen. Parker allegedly attacked a newspaper photographer outside his Flatbush home, breaking the victim’s finger and damaging his car and camera. The photographer, William Lopez of the New York Post, was reportedly working on a story about Parker’s two-story house going into foreclosure when the senator allegedly confronted him to stop him from taking pictures.

Days after the incident, Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith fired Parker from the positions of majority whip and Energy Committee chairman, which lost Parker a $22,000 stipend.

Parker’s attorneys tried to broker a deal with the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office to reduce the charges, but the D.A.’s office scrapped the plan and indicted Parker for felony assault. If convicted, he could lose his seat in Albany.

The encounter was the latest in a string of reported assaults involving Parker, who has held office since 2002.

In 2005, he was arrested on charges he punched a traffic agent who was writing him a ticket. The charges were dropped after Parker agreed to take an anger management class.

That year, Parker’s security pass for state buildings was temporarily suspended for repeated violations of security regulations. A former aide complained that Parker had once assaulted her, then threatened her for talking about the incident.

Last summer, another aide filed a report with police saying Parker had shoved her and smashed her glasses during an argument. At the time, Parker claimed that the woman hit him first.

After Smith stripped him of his leadership roles, Parker said his work in the Senate would continue as normal.

“I expect to be here every week,� Parker said from Albany. “I think that the (court) system will work. It’s worked for me in the past.�

Parker also said he agreed with Smith’s decision to replace him in leadership positions while the criminal case is under way.

“I don’t think I have an anger issue,� Parker told reporters. “Hopefully this will be a bad memory.�

Parker’s trial was adjourned until Oct. 15.

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