Man accused of abusing child to get new attorney

A Longmont man accused of sexually and physically abusing a child had his arraignment hearing pushed back so he can get a new attorney.

Chad Basnett, 30, is charged with sexually assaulting a child under 15 while in a position of trust and three counts of child abuse that knowingly caused injury.

At a remote arraignment hearing Friday, Basnett’s attorney Michael Martin said he had filed a motion to withdraw from the

case, though he did not state a reason in open court.

Prosecutors did not object to the motion, and Boulder District Judge Norma Sierra allowed Martin to withdraw from the case.

Basnett said he would now be applying for the public defender’s office. Boulder public defender Kathryn Herold said that because Basnett remained in custody on a $50,000 bond, he should be automatically eligible.

Basnett’s arraignment hearing was pushed back to Jan. 7.

A person called Longmont police to report a possible child abuse on May 16, 2019, prompting an investigation.

The abuse is believed to have occurred between April 2018 and August 2018.

During interviews in June and October, the named victim told a forensic interviewer Basnett had touched her inappropriately and also smacked her back, legs and butt “out of nowhere” multiple times, sometimes causing her so much pain that running or sitting hurt.

The named victim described being questioned by a neighbor about visible bruises, but she said she feared Basnett and told the neighbor the injuries were from playing outside. Basnett reportedly told the girl “if you tell anyone, I will hit you harder,” according to the affidavit.

The girl also said Basnett watched her when she was unclothed. She said once when she got out of the shower, he was standing there and pulled away her towel and struck her on the butt, according to the affidavit. She also described him watching her while she was trying to get dressed and that it made her feel “uncomfortable.”

In a second interview, the girl told the interviewer Basnett would wake her up and force her to watch porn by physically holding her head in place and smacking her if she started to fall asleep, according to the affidavit.

The girl did know Basnett, but the Times-call is not specifying how the girl knew Basnett to protect her identity.

In an interview with a Longmont detective, Basnett denied ever hitting the girl or watching her while she was naked.