New Haven residency requirement for prospective firefighters could pose legal threat, lawyers tell aldermen
December 5, 2011
By Abbe Smith and William Kaempffer, New Haven Register
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NEW HAVEN — For aldermen who want to consider requiring firefighter applicants to live in the city, attorneys for the city warned such a move could pose a serious legal threat.
Corporation Counsel Victor Bolden and Hartford lawyer Steven Ecker, who works in liability litigation, appeared before the aldermanic City Services and Environmental Policy Committee Tuesday to answer questions about the potential legal repercussions of residency requirements.
The city is getting ready to hire a new class of firefighters and had proposed requiring half the applicants be New Haven residents.
However, some in the city, including several aldermen, think all applicants should be city residents.
