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New Canaan commission votes to record disciplinary actions against Chief Bassett, schedules predisciplinary hearing
Summary
The commission voted unanimously to approve written disciplinary measures read in public for Chief Bassett — including a required apology, anti‑harassment training, and a predisciplinary hearing — and set a preliminary hearing for the following Thursday at 5 p.m. in Town Hall.
The New Canaan Fire Commission voted unanimously to approve preliminary disciplinary measures against Chief Bassett after a closed‑session discussion and reading of findings in public.
The chair read the commission’s preliminary determinations: Chief Bassett will be written up for creating "a reasonable perception of unequal treatment" and for "manner of communication with a firefighter that was inappropriate;" he must post a public apology and meet with a staff member regarding anti‑harassment training. The chair also said Chief Bassett would be written up for "inappropriate use of insurance funds" and that a predisciplinary hearing would be scheduled to discuss the matters further.
The chair announced the predisciplinary hearing would be held "Thursday, the nineteenth, next Thursday, at 5PM in Town Hall," and said a formal letter documenting policy violations will be delivered to Chief Bassett. After the chair finished reading, a commissioner moved to approve the measures "as read," a second followed, and the commission voted "aye" unanimously.
The vote recorded in the meeting shows the commission approved the public readout of disciplinary actions; the record indicates further formal process (a predisciplinary hearing and a written letter) will follow. The commission did not make final disciplinary determinations at the meeting; those will be addressed in the scheduled hearing.
Next steps: the commission will deliver the written notification to Chief Bassett and conduct the predisciplinary hearing on the announced date. Any final personnel action will be recorded in subsequent minutes or meeting documents.
