by Steven M. Andrews
Just a little more than one year ago, Mark Fisher was a former football player and sophomore at Fairfield University who friends and teammates regarded as a great friend and person.
However, after a night of partying in New York City with several friends from Fairfield his life was cut short by a killer who remains free, despite a mounting pile of evidence and short list of suspects.
“We have no results, we’re hoping that soon we hear something,” said his mother, Nancy Fisher. “We just want closure.”
That closure may be coming one step closer with the recent arrest of one of the men police had been searching for in relation to Fisher’s death. John Guica, 20, who hosted the party where Fisher, 19, was last seen alive, was arrested at the beginning of the month on unrelated drug charges and for wearing a bulletproof vest, according to the New York Post. Charges are still pending, but Guica was also arrested last summer for assault according to The New York Times.
Fisher was found dead on the morning of Sunday Oct. 12, 2003 in front of a home on Argyle Road in Brooklyn. He had been shot five times and was wrapped in a yellow blanket. After spending the night going to New York City bars, he was seen with friends, including students of Fairfield University, at Guica’s home for a house party. Details about what happened next are few, but authorities believe some of the people at the house not only know what happened, but are withholding critical information.
More aggravating for Fisher’s friends and family is the fact that several of these people have hired lawyers and refuse to speak to police without them.
“I believe time will tell what happened,” said Fisher’s mother. “I don’t know if they can go their whole life without telling. How could they protect a criminal?”
New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, who could not be reached by press time, told Newsday last week that there have been some recent developments, but they are not ready to come forward with anything yet. A Brooklyn grand jury has been hearing evidence in the case but not yet produced any results.
“They’re working very hard on the case right now,” Mrs. Fisher said. “They have three detectives working full time.”
In an effort to coax information from unwilling sources, the Fisher family has repeatedly raised the reward money for information leading to the arrest of Mark’s killer.
“I would give anything to find out what happened that night,” said Mark’s mother. “The reward is up to $100,000 but we don’t know if money will make someone talk. We just want to prove a point. If everyone you were with is a stranger and you don’t come forward it’s one thing, the people involved know more than they are sharing.”
Guica’s mother, Doreen Giuliano, denied her son had any part in the killing and told reporters that her son has been unfairly treated by police and the media since the incident. She said Guica has been forced to quit school and see a therapist, as well as causing the family to move.
She told Newsday that, “His life ended. Why? He had a party. His life ended with Mark Fisher’s.”
Nancy Fisher is willing to empathize a little with Giuliano but sees a fundamental difference in their situations.
“I feel bad for her, because a mother is a mother,” she said. “But we don’t have our child here anymore. Her son’s life is not the same as Mark’s.”
In the end, she hopes this long year of waiting is soon ended by someone finally breaking their silence.
“I don’t know who is really holding all the cards in this case,” said Mrs. Fisher. “I don’t think they will just volunteer this information. The only people who I think are holding back information are those with lawyers.”
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