John Michael Fabrizi (born December 25, 1956) is a former mayor of

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the List of cities by population in New England, fifth-most populous ...

, succeeded by Bill Finch. He is also a member of the U.S. Democratic Party.

Career

Fabrizi holds degrees from Southern Connecticut State University as well as the University of Bridgeport and has served in numerous public service capacities. He was assistant director of Bridgeport's

adult education Adult education, distinct from child education, is a practice in which adults engage in systematic and sustained self-educating activities in order to gain new forms of knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values. Merriam, Sharan B. & Brockett, Ralp ...

program, and was also a teacher of fifth and sixth graders. He was first elected to

public office Public Administration (a form of governance) or Public Policy and Administration (an academic discipline) is the implementation of public policy, administration of government establishment (public governance), management of non-profit establ ...

, the Bridgeport Civil Service Administration, in 1983. In 1992, Fabrizi was elected to the Bridgeport Democratic Town Committee and in 1996, he was elected to the

Democratic State Central Committee of Connecticut The Connecticut Democratic State Central Committee (CT Dems) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Connecticut. Its chair is Nancy DiNardo. Democrats control both chambers of the state legislature, all constitutional state off ...

. In 1997, he was elected to the Bridgeport City Council. He became the mayor of Bridgeport in 2003, after the previous mayor,

Joseph P. Ganim Joseph Peter Ganim (born October 21, 1959) is an American Democratic politician, former attorney, and convicted felon who is currently serving as the mayor of Bridgeport, Connecticut. He was elected mayor of the city six times serving from 199 ...

, was sentenced to nine years in a federal prison for

corruption charges Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

. As mayor, Fabrizi was a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition, an organization formed in 2006 and co-chaired by New York City mayor

Michael Bloomberg Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman, politician, philanthropist, and author. He is the majority owner, co-founder and CEO of Bloomberg L.P. He was Mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013, and was a ca ...

and Boston mayor

Thomas Menino Thomas Michael Menino (December 27, 1942 – October 30, 2014) was an American politician who served as the 53rd mayor of Boston, from 1993 to 2014. He was the city's longest-serving mayor. He was elected mayor in 1993 after first serving three ...

Cocaine and Alcohol Use

On June 20, 2006, Mayor John M. Fabrizi admitted to cocaine and alcohol abuse while serving as mayor. Prior to admitting to drug use, the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...

received a tip from Shawn Fardy, a Bridgeport Democratic Town Committee member, that he possessed a videotape of Fabrizi using cocaine. The information surfaced during an investigation into a drug ring led by Juan Marrero, a Bridgeport business owner. Mr. Fardy was sentenced to "no more than 27 months in prison" as a result of his arrest. On May 9, 2007, Fabrizi announced he would not seek re-election, but served on the

for the 2008-2010 term. More Recently, Fabrizi was a supporter of Bridgeport's Mayor Bill Finch.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fabrizi, John M. 1956 births Living people Connecticut Democrats American politicians of Italian descent Southern Connecticut State University alumni University of Bridgeport alumni Mayors of Bridgeport, Connecticut