Real Housewives of New York City Star Charged With Assault

When the second season of Bravo's The Real Housewives of New York City debuted last month, the reality show welcomed a sixth housewife, Kelly Killoren Bensimon. A montage of the 40-year-old mother of two showed her juggling a plethora of careers: designer, columnist, editor, and equestrian, appearing more accomplished—even cavalier—than the rest of the cast. Now the former model and longtime fixture of the Hamptons social scene has been charged with assaulting her boyfriend, 30-year-old Nicholas Stefanov.

The criminal complaint filed by Stefanov says Bensimon hit him "with a closed fist, thereby causing informant to suffer a laceration below informant's left eye and substantial pain."

According to the New York Daily News, Stefanov pointed to stress from their recent engagement and pressure from being on the show for causing her to lash out. "She is a great girl," he said. "I do want to work it out. But what are you supposed to do when a girl is hitting you, just sit there like a punching bag?

Bensimon turned herself in Thursday and was released on her own recognizance. She is charged with misdemeanor third-degree assault and is due in court at the end of the month.

The story is hot, arriving on the heels of pop star Chris Brown's being charged with assault in the widely publicized Rihanna beating case, and it sheds light on a topic that is rarely discussed: women who abuse men. According to the New York Post, Stefanov argued: "If I had done it to her, I would have been put in jail immediately. . . . My injuries are worse than Rihanna's—and Chris Brown was charged with two felonies."