April Capone Almon

Capone was born, raised and educated in East Haven, Connecticut. She attended local schools and received her MBA from Southern Connecticut State University. She married in 1999 to Regan Almon and divorced in 2011. ==Career==

She entered local politics and was elected to the 15-member Town Council of East Haven as its only Democrat. In 2010 Democratic registered voters outnumbered registered Republicans, but another major portion of the electorate is independent. In 2007, Capone challenged the 10-year Republican incumbent mayor, Joseph A. Maturo, Jr., In September 2009, Capone and her assistant Erica Berg turned themselves in to police; they were arrested on charges of interfering with police towing cars at Cosey Beach on July 19. The state did not prosecute this case. On September 28, 2009, former Police Commissioner William J. Illingworth filed an ethics complaint against Almon for her having substantially raised the salary of her assistant Berg in 2008, suggesting they may have an improper personal relationship. Capone Almon put Gallo on administrative leave after receiving the report, pending final actions. ==2011 General Election==

In the November 2011 General Election, Capone, the incumbent, was challenged by Republican Joseph Maturo, Jr., the former mayor. He narrowly defeated her by 31 votes. This slim margin forced an automatic recount, as had occurred in the 2007 election, but he maintained his victory. He immediately reinstated Gallo, who barred police commission members from police headquarters and the parking lot. They soon passed a policy that required him to allow them access. In December 2011, the Justice Department delivered its final report of the civil investigation into the police department, concluding that it had a pattern of "systematically discriminating against Latinos." ==Private life==

On April 8, 2010, Capone donated a kidney to resident Carlos Sanchez, whose kidneys were failing due to diabetes. She had seen his request on Facebook and privately pursued the issue, finding she was a match. They spent about a week in the hospital after surgery before each returned to work. ==References==