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Putney Selectboard chair apologizes for removal of a public commenter, says action was still justified
Summary
Selectboard Chair Aileen Chute apologized for the manner in which she removed a member of the public at an Aug. 21 meeting, calling her conduct unprofessional while reiterating the removal was due to repeated rule violations and a perceived threat, the board heard Sept. 4.
Aileen Chute, chair of the Putney Selectboard, read a prepared statement at the Sept. 4 meeting apologizing for how she removed a member of the public at the board’s Aug. 21 meeting.
Chute said the removal was “unprofessional,” “startling,” and “done in anger,” and she apologized to the member and to the public for how she handled the situation. At the same time, Chute said she stood by the decision to remove the person because the commenter repeatedly violated the rules for public comment—she said the person interrupted the meeting about 10 times, made rude comments and “issued what I clearly heard to be a threat of bodily harm,” which Chute said made the situation intolerable.
Chute framed the apology as a commitment to uphold the meeting’s rules and to model civil conduct in a town where some issues have become heated. “Our Rules and Procedures are meant to help us hear each other in constructive and civil ways, even when—or especially when—we are angry,” she said in the prepared remarks.
No formal disciplinary action against Chute was recorded at the Sept. 4 meeting, and the Selectboard proceeded to other agenda items. The board’s minutes show the statement was entered into the record and that the board continued with the published agenda.
