John Crisafulli was born in the Bronx, NY,  to John and Helen Crisafulli in 1951 and grew up in Wantagh, NY.   He attended Chaminade High School on Long Island and received his Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science at the University of Rochester.  He taught high school Social Studies for five years and has a Masters Degree in Education from Long Island University.  In 1978, he moved to Syracuse to attend law school at Syracuse University. After graduating with a Juris Doctor in 1980, he immediately engaged in the private practice of law while also teaching law at Bryant and Stratton Business Institute.   John is experienced in the areas of criminal law, family law, matrimonial law, real estate, probate and estate law, social security, disability law, and civil law.
 
Since 2003, John has been the Supervising Hearing Examiner for the City of Syracuse Parking Violations Bureau.  In that capacity, he is responsible for overseeing the adjudication of appeals from motorists who contest their parking tickets.  He is directly responsible for coordinating the schedules of four other hearing examiners, who, in addition to himself, conduct hearings for the City of Syracuse.
John has been an active member of the Syracuse community for over 30 years, and has been involved in various activities such as coaching soccer for the Valley Junior Athletic Association, and working with Our Lady of Lourdes Church, where he has been a parishioner for the past twenty years.
 
As an attorney, John is an active member of the Onondaga County Bar Association, where he has served on the family law committee, as well as the lawyer’s referral  committee.  He has also taught the Children’s First Program for separating and divorcing parents.
 
John has happily lived in the Strathmore area of Syracuse with his wife and four children since 1986.  His wife, Susan, is the Reading Specialist at McKinley-Brighton Elementary School on the city’s south side.   A former adjunct professor at Onondaga Community College, she has been employed by the Syracuse City School District for the past 14 years. His four children all graduated from Corcoran High School.  His eldest son, John, received his Bachelor’s Degree from Georgetown University and recently earned his Master’s Degree at the S.I. Newhouse School of Syracuse University.  His son, James, received his Bachelor’s degree from Loyola College of Maryland and after graduation, taught at St. Gabriel’s School in Bangkok, Thailand, for two years before returning home. He is now employed by the City of Syracuse.   His son, Paul,  received his  Bachelor’s Degree from  St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, and is now working with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps  in San Diego.  His youngest child and only daughter, Julianne, is currently working towards her undergraduate degree at the University of Vermont, entering her junior year.

 
John, Julianne, Jim, Paul