NT Police settle law suit after denying officer procedural fairness

NT Police has settled a civil suit with Acting Superintendent Lee Morgan, admitting it denied the experienced senior officer procedural fairness and natural justice.

NT Police has settled a law suit with Acting Superintendent Lee Morgan.

NT POLICE has settled a civil suit with Acting Superintendent Lee Morgan, admitting it denied the experienced senior officer procedural fairness and natural justice in overlooking him for a promotion.

Speaking following the settlement on Wednesday, Supt Morgan said he was second in line for promotion in mid-2018 when he was advised he was out of contention due to being under investigation for alleged misconduct.

“In January of last year I was cleared of any wrongdoing and I was placed back in the promotional pool, however by that stage all the promotions had been handed out,” he said.

Supt Morgan took NT Police to the Supreme Court over the dispute and the matter was due to go to a three day contested hearing this week before the settlement was reached.

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Supt Morgan said while the immediate opportunity for promotion had now been lost, he had “a lot of confidence in the current management team” under Commissioner Jamie Chalker.

“I feel I’ve got a lot to offer the NT Police and the community and moving forward I’ll continue to work on that and who knows what the future holds,” he said.

“This wasn’t just about me, this was about providing protection to members going forward.

“I’m no expert but I think what we’ve achieved in this settlement will offer protection to all our members in the future so hopefully no one else has to go through what I’ve been through.”

Supt Morgan thanked the NT Police Association for their support during a “tough couple of years” and president Paul McCue said while it was disappointing the matter ended up in court, the NTPA was pleased with the result.

“Detective Senior Sergeant Lee Morgan has had the full backing of the NTPA from the very beginning of this matter, and we are pleased to have been able to support him to achieve this outcome,” he said.

NT Police also paid Supt Morgan’s court costs.