Frank J. Barbaro

Francesco Joseph Barbaro^[1] (December 18, 1927 – September 4, 2016) was an American politician from the Democratic Party who served in the New York State Assembly from the 47th district (Bensonhurst, Brooklyn) from 1973 to 1996.^[2][3]

Frank J. Barbaro
Member of the New York State Assembly from the 47th district
In office January 1, 1973 – December 31, 1996
Preceded by	Salvatore J. Grieco
Succeeded by	William Colton
Personal details
Born	(1927-12-18)December 18, 1927 New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	September 4, 2016(2016-09-04) (aged 88) Watervliet, New York, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Mary Borysewicz
Children	3

Early years

A son of immigrants, after high school he served in the navy before college (NYU, Brooklyn Law School). Prior to running for office he was a longshoreman.^[1]

Career

Barbaro, a liberal Democrat, served as a member of the New York State Assembly from 1973 to 1996. He unsuccessfully ran against Ed Koch in the 1981 New York City mayoral election, running to his left; after Koch defeated him for the Democratic nomination, Barbaro ran in the general election as an independent candidate.^[1]

An example of Barbaro working as a legislator with others^[4] involved reclaiming a Bensonhurst public school that was transferred to the Transit Authority in 1981 due to it being underutilized. By 1992, with population growth, it was needed, yet in 1998 it still had not been given back.^[5]

Judge

Barbaro later served as a New York Supreme Court judge for six years.^[1]

In 1999, Barbaro presided over a bench trial for a murder case, finding the defendant guilty and sentencing him to 15 years to life in prison. The verdict was upheld in a 2004 appeal.^[6] However, Barbaro later felt his judgment was in error. In 2013, he testified in favor of reversing his decision, but it was again upheld, with Justice ShawnDya L. Simpson concluding that, while she was also deeply troubled by the case, there were no legal grounds to overturn the ruling.^[7]

Later political involvement

In 2004, Barbaro ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in New York's 13th congressional district, losing to incumbent Republican Vito J. Fossella.^[8][9]

Barbaro served as a delegate for Bernie Sanders during the 2016 Democratic National Convention.^[1]

Personal life and death

Barbaro ("BAR-ba-roe"^[10]) and his wife, the former Mary Borysewicz, had three daughters.^[1]

In the 2000s, Barbaro moved from Brooklyn to Watervliet, New York.^[1] He died from heart failure at his home on September 4, 2016, at the age of 88.^[1]