Dominic Foppoli #
Introduction #
Dominic Foppoli is a California politician and winery owner who served as mayor of Windsor, a town in Sonoma County, from late 2018 until 2021. His political career collapsed in 2021, when multiple women publicly accused him of sexual assault and misconduct in allegations spanning roughly two decades, and he resigned as mayor amid investigations and mounting community backlash. Five years later, on September 11, 2026, a Sonoma County civil jury found him liable for sexually assaulting seven women and ordered him to pay a combined $13 million in compensatory damages. Foppoli has consistently denied the allegations, maintains that the claims are not valid, and is expected to pursue an appeal.
Background Information #
Foppoli led Windsor, a small town in northern California’s wine country, from late 2018 to 2021. Outside politics, he owned Christopher Creek Winery, and the scandal that ended his mayoralty damaged the family wine business. He was also a member of the Santa Rosa chapter of Active 20-30, an all-male charitable social club. The allegations that undid him first became public in 2021, when multiple women accused the then-mayor of physical and sexual abuse. Four women came forward to the San Francisco Chronicle, and according to that paper a total of 13 women ultimately accused Foppoli of sexual assault or misconduct.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation #
Adjudicated vs. alleged. The civil jury’s finding of liability against Foppoli is a court adjudication, decided on the civil preponderance-of-the-evidence standard rather than a criminal one. Foppoli was never criminally charged in connection with these claims, has denied wrongdoing, and the verdict can be appealed. Any conduct beyond what the verdict resolved remains an unproven allegation.
The accusations against Foppoli became public in 2021, when multiple women accused him of physical and sexual abuse in incidents alleged to span from 2001 to 2020. Following a wave of community backlash, Foppoli resigned as Windsor’s mayor in May 2021 amid the investigations and mounting allegations. Criminal proceedings never followed: the sheriff’s office turned its 11-month investigation over to California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office in March 2022, and in April 2024 the attorney general declined to file sexual assault charges, saying investigators “don’t have enough evidence to warrant filing charges on the cases not barred by the statute of limitations.”
A civil lawsuit followed instead. Filed in April 2022, it detailed allegations from seven women identified in court as Jane Does: several alleged Foppoli drugged their drinks before assaulting them, and Jane Doe 1 claimed he raped her dozens of times, including one alleged incident in which she said he handcuffed her to a bed. One plaintiff alleged Foppoli sexually assaulted her during the national Active 20-30 convention in Reno, Nevada, in June 2012, and accused the organization of failing to investigate complaints she made to its leaders. Foppoli denied the accusations and said he had not engaged in nonconsensual sexual acts.
Public Reaction and Consequences #
Adjudicated vs. alleged. The liability verdict described below is a matter of court record, reached by a civil jury on the preponderance standard. Foppoli was never criminally charged, denies wrongdoing, and is seeking a new trial or appeal.
The civil trial began in July 2026 at the Sonoma County Civil and Family Law Courthouse in Santa Rosa, and Foppoli testified, again denying the allegations. “I’ve been a terrible boyfriend and partner, cheating, selfish and egotistical, but I’ve never done any of those things I’m being sued for,” he said on the stand. On September 11, 2026, the jury found him liable for sexually assaulting the seven women and awarded a combined $13 million in compensatory damages, with individual awards ranging from $6,000 to $4,650,938. The jury also found the Santa Rosa Active 20-30 chapter liable for Jane Doe 4’s alleged assault and awarded her an additional $2 million.
Lead plaintiffs’ attorney Traci Carrillo said her clients “feel vindicated and will now focus on the much-needed healing the jury has provided for them,” adding, “It took over 5 years to get them justice, which was always about accountability.” Defense attorney Andrew Watters said the defense was “extremely disappointed” and plans to evaluate an appeal, arguing the judge excluded defense witnesses while letting plaintiffs’ witnesses “talk forever” and that “the jury sent a message based on questionable self-reported evidence.” Foppoli, speaking outside the courthouse, said his accusers “are trying to crucify me for a cause I’m not responsible for.”
Current Status #
Foppoli owes the $13 million in compensatory damages, and a punitive damages phase of the trial is scheduled to begin the following Tuesday, at which he could be ordered to pay additional penalties. His attorney said he would first seek a mistrial over the excluded defense witnesses and, failing that, pursue an appeal. He was never criminally charged in connection with the claims.
Allegations. The separate suits described here are unproven claims never criminally charged; Foppoli denies them.
Litigation involving Foppoli continues beyond the verdict: he still faces a separate lawsuit from Farrah Abraham, a social media influencer and former reality television personality who claims he raped her at a Florida house party in March 2021, a case expected to go to trial next year.
Impact on Their Career/Life #
The allegations ended Foppoli’s mayoralty in 2021 and permanently closed off the political career that the verdict has now sealed with a formal finding of liability. The scandal also damaged the family wine business, where he owned Christopher Creek Winery — which separately settled a lawsuit filed by a Montana woman who alleged Foppoli assaulted her there in 2020, when she was 18. The financial consequences are substantial: a $13 million judgment that could grow in the punitive phase, plus another $2 million awarded against his former social club on behalf of one of the plaintiffs. Whether the verdict survives appeal will determine the final chapter, but as a public figure, Foppoli’s name is now attached to one of the most consequential civil sexual-abuse verdicts in Sonoma County history.