Sgt. Chuck Grasso Leaving Police Department to Become Enfield EMS Captain

Longtime Enfield police Sgt. Chuck Grasso will be stepping down from that duty in a few weeks, but is hardly disappearing from the Department of Public Safety.

Grasso has been named captain of the town's Emergency Medical Services unit, a position that ranks second in the department under director Gary Wiemokly. He will begin his new duties March 4.

”My major responsibilities will be day-to-day operation of the department and major incident command," Grasso said in an interview Wednesday. "If you were to equate it to a police department, it's the equivalent of  a deputy police chief."

Grasso's father was a police captain in Hartford. "I've been around this my entire life, it's in my blood," he said. "I started as a junior firefighter in South Windsor at 14, then started  as an EMT at age 18. I'm 51 now, so it's been a few years,"

He began his law enforcement career as a constable in Ellington in 1986. He joined the Enfield Police Department in 1995, and served in numerous roles, including patrol, traffic, accident reconstruction, school resource officer and community policing.

Grasso was promoted to sergeant in 2007, and serves as commander of Metro Traffic, a multi-town accident reconstruction team. He was also the principal grant writer for the department, bringing in $1.16 million in grants over the past four years.

Police Chief Carl Sferrazza said, "What he has accomplished here has been extraordinary. He's reliable and intelligent, likes to take on projects, and we're certainly going to miss him. On the other hand, we didn't lose him to the private sector. He's working for EMS, and we both report to the same boss, so in the future, anytime we need his expertise, he's just a phone call away."

"He's going to be a great addition," Director of Public Safety Chris Bromson said. "His wealth of experience as a sergeant, in grant writing and in supervision of fellow officers will make him a great asset to EMS."

Wiemokly is ecstatic about working alongside Grasso. "We're very excited to have Chuck join our team. He brings a wealth of organizational knowledge and management skills, as well as a solid track record of working with other agencies around the state and with some of our federal partners," he said. "This will certainly position Enfield EMS with some solid footing to join in discussion on some committees and boards that we have been unable to do."