Chief’s arrest a black eye for Bridgeport

The saddest aspect of the latest corruption crisis in the state’s largest city is how few people were surprised by it. Bridgeport politics, unfortunately, has a reputation for this sort of thing. And while now-former Police Chief Armando Perez and former acting Personnel Director David Dunn are entitled to a presumption of innocence and due process, the evidence of wrongdoing unveiled Thursday by federal officials is thorough and damning.

According to the criminal complaint released on Thursday, Perez and Dunn conspired to rig the city’s nationwide search for a new police chief in 2018, then lied to investigators about it. Both were charged with wire fraud, conspiracy and lying to the FBI.

It’s possible that this is as far as the investigation will go, and that no other alleged malfeasance will be revealed. Given Bridgeport’s history, few would be surprised if this were just the beginning.

There will, of course, be plenty of questions raised about any role Mayor Joe Ganim may have played in the alleged scheme. He is not named in the criminal complaint handed down against Perez and Dunn, other than a reference to the fact that “Dunn stated that the Mayor wanted Perez to be in the top three” candidates for the chief position, which made him eligible to be offered the job on a full-time basis.

It has never been a secret that Ganim and Perez are close, and that the mayor favored Perez for the job. Their connection goes back to Ganim’s first run as mayor in the 1990s, and Perez was a major supporter of Ganim as he successfully sought to reclaim his old job in 2015.

But regardless of where the investigation ends up, there’s no question this reflects poorly on Ganim, and not just because of his relationship to Perez. Ganim promised upon his return to public service that he would run an administration that would be held to the highest ethical standards. Now, in one of the most important positions in the city, that promise has apparently fallen short.

Ganim made his promise for enhanced ethical standards because of the unique circumstances surrounding his political comeback, which came after serving seven years in federal prison after his 2003 conviction on corruption charges. Ganim said not only had he learned his lesson, but that he would lead the city with unprecedented integrity and openness.

He pledged a slate of new initiatives that would open city finances to public scrutiny and put officials in positions of power who would curb any potential excesses. For instance, Ganim campaigned on creating an Office of Public Integrity in City Hall, to be run by a former FBI agent who had helped investigate his first administration.

Now, five years later, Bridgeport again finds itself in the midst of a high-profile corruption case. At the very least, it has the appearance of a broken campaign promise, one that was central to the mayor’s remarkable comeback story. The city will be fortunate if that’s all it ends up being.

Ganim promised upon his return to public service that he would run an administration that would be held to the highest ethical standards. Now, in one of the most important positions in the city, that promise has apparently fallen short.