William Reinstein

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William Reinstein
Portrait of William Reinstein
Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives
In office
1987–1998
Preceded byAngelo Cataldo
Succeeded byKathi-Anne Reinstein
Mayor of Revere, Massachusetts
In office
1972–1978
Preceded byGeorge Colella
Succeeded byGeorge Colella
Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from the 17th Suffolk District
In office
1969–1973
Preceded by1
Succeeded byAngelo Cataldo
Personal details
BornMarch 26, 1939[1]
Revere, Massachusetts[1]
DiedMay 15, 1998 (aged 59)[2]
Boston, Massachusetts[2]
NationalityAmerican
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseMaureen Reinstein
ChildrenKathi-Anne Reinstein
William Reinstein, Jr.
Alma materRevere High School
OccupationInsurance adjuster[3]
Politician

William G. Reinstein was an American politician who served as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Mayor of Revere, Massachusetts.

Early life[edit]

Reinstein was born on March 26, 1939, in Revere, Massachusetts. He graduated from Revere High School and attended Bentley College and Boston University.[1]

Political career[edit]

Early career[edit]

In 1963, Reinstein began his political career at the age of 23 by running for the Revere School Committee.[4] He topped the ticket in his first election. In 1968 he was elected to the City Council.[2] He also served on the Regional Vocational School Committee from 1966 to 1969.[1]

In 1968, Reinstein was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives. In March 1969 he introduced a controversial bill that would have made dealing heroin a capital crime.[5]

In 1971, Reinstein ran for Mayor of Revere. He finished first in a four-way primary race and defeated three-term incumbent George Colella 11,356 votes to 9,394 in the general election.[5] He was reelected twice, defeating City Councilor Joseph Del Grosso in 1973 and Gerald Esposito in 1975.

In 1974, Reinstein ran in the special election to succeed the deceased Torbert Macdonald as the U.S. representative from Massachusetts's 7th district. He finished sixth in a twelve-candidate Democratic primary that was won by state representative Ed Markey.

Indictment and trials[edit]

In 1976 Reinstein was indicted for bribery and perjury after a yearlong investigation into alleged kickbacks during the construction of Revere High School.[6] A mistrial was declared on November 24, 1978, after a major prosecution witness was unable to complete his testimony. The witness complained of feeling ill during his testimony and was later diagnosed with cancer.[7] He died before the case was retried.[8] Reinstein's retrial was also declared a mistrial after a full-page advertisement in a North Shore magazine suggested that Reinstein's rights were being trampled on and that he was the object of a "political vendetta." The judge found this ad to be a "direct breach of the understanding and commitment which has led to ... an unsequestered jury."[9] The third trial ended on February 9, 1982, with Reinstein being acquitted of all charges.[10]

Later political career[edit]

In 1983, Reinstein returned to politics as a candidate for City Councilor at Large. He finished second in an election in which the top five candidates were elected with 6398 votes.[11]

In 1986, Reinstein challenged incumbent state representative Angelo Cataldo. He defeated Cataldo 4,586 votes to 4,039 in the Democratic primary.[12] During his tenure in the state house, Reinstein was a supporter of the death penalty and opposed abortions with exceptions of rape and incest.[13][14] He remained in the House until his death on May 15, 1998.[2] He was succeeded by his daughter Kathi-Anne Reinstein.[13]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

^ The district sent two representatives to the House at this time. Reinstein and Joseph Del Grosso were preceded by Joseph DiCarlo and Raymond Edward Carey.

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Public Officers of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts 1997-1998.
  2. ^ a b c d Protopsaltis, Spiros (May 17, 1998). "William G. Reinstein of Revere, was state legislator, mayor; at 59". The Boston Globe.
  3. ^ Public Officers of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts 1969-1970.
  4. ^ "Newcomers Top Revere, Lynn". The Boston Globe. October 16, 1963.
  5. ^ a b "Reinstein new mayor of Revere". The Boston Globe. November 3, 1971.
  6. ^ Sheehan, Alan H. (December 3, 1976). "Revere mayor, 6 others indicted". The Boston Globe.
  7. ^ Sheehan, Alan (November 25, 1978). "Mistrial declared in Reinstein case, witness has cancer". The Boston Globe.
  8. ^ "Kickbacks witness who recanted dies". The Boston Globe. September 1, 1979.
  9. ^ "Ex-Revere Mayor Reinstein to Stand Trial for the 3d Time". The Boston Globe. September 9, 1980.
  10. ^ Sheehan, Alan (February 10, 1982). "After three trials, Reinstein is acquitted". The Boston Globe.
  11. ^ "Revere". The Boston Globe. November 9, 1983.
  12. ^ "1986 State Representative Democratic Primary 21st Suffolk District". Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  13. ^ a b Mooney, Brian C (November 11, 1998). "On the death penalty, 2 sides weigh each move". The Boston Globe.
  14. ^ Peter J. Howe; Teresa M. Hanafin (October 9, 1991). "Catholic legislators are split on abortion Survey: Many fault Law statement on 'prochoice'". The Boston Globe.
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