DeMaria grew up in the thick of it, winning election to the city’s Common Council before he had graduated from Northeastern University.

“As mayor of the city, you associate on a daily basis with people from all walks of life,” he said in his statement to the Globe.ĭeMaria had no interest in discussing the casino controversy further, canceling four scheduled meetings with the Globe before finally admitting he does not want to be interviewed.Įverett, one of the poorest cities in the state, has a history of rough-and-tumble politics, producing a respected House speaker on the one hand, and a disgraced state representative who went to prison for voter fraud last year on the other. DeMaria said neither relationship created a conflict of interest in his pursuit of a casino for his hard-luck city.ĭeMaria also said he sees no problem associating with DeCicco and Lightbody.

State ethics law calls for disclosure of any relationship that could create the impression that a public official is biased, including “close friendship.”ĭeMaria said in a written statement that he saw no reason to disclose his relationship with Lightbody or DeCicco, a political supporter who the mayor acknowledges has twice had him as a guest on his private yacht. Before his participation in the project became public, Lightbody stood to make millions from the casino that DeMaria was promoting. It is illegal in Massachusetts for felons to have a financial stake in a casino, which regulators have interpreted to include an indirect stake such as owning a casino site.ĭeMaria also filed no ethics disclosure showing that he had what state gambling regulators call a “longterm personal friendship” with Lightbody, and that Lightbody was his main contact among the owners of the proposed casino site.

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