NAAJA board knew of chair Hugh Woodbury’s domestic assault of pregnant partner

The new chair of NAAJA stood on his pregnant partner’s stomach, pushed her to the ground, slammed her arm in a door and repeatedly yelled degrading slurs at her in front of their two-year-old child.

North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency chair Hugh Woodbury pleaded guilty to a horrific domestic assault; inset, with his partner.

The board of Australia’s largest Aboriginal legal service knowingly appointed a chair who pleaded guilty to a horrific domestic assault against his pregnant partner, having stood on her stomach, pushed her to the ground, slammed her arm in a door and yelled degrading slurs at her in front of their two-year-old child.

Hugh Woodbury, 42, who became head of the board of North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency in March, served a 12-month good behaviour bond and was fined $200 without conviction after his partner, whom The Australian has chosen not to name, reported the assault to police in 2020.

The embattled NAAJA has recently lost dozens of staff and was experiencing a critical shortage in crime-ridden Alice Springs earlier this year, where services drew to a halt and vulnerable Aboriginal defendants were forced to represent themselves in court. This came amid serious allegations of corruption levelled at former chair Colleen Rosas and former chief executive Priscilla Atkins in court proceedings, which they deny.

In his role, Woodbury oversees more than $20m a year in federal government funding, administered by the Northern Territory government through the National Legal Assistance Partnership.

A police fact sheet, obtained by The Australian from the court, reveals that on July 4, 2020, Woodbury was picked up by his partner and their youngest child after drinking heavily at a house in Alice Springs.

At the time, she was 17 weeks pregnant with the couple’s third child. While driving home, Woodbury started arguing with his partner, swearing at her and “repeatedly calling her a c..t” while the toddler was in the car.

When they got home, the partner collected their eldest child, aged eight, from the neighbour’s house. Upon her return, Woodbury continued swearing and yelling at her.

He followed her outside when she went to have a cigarette, and when she tried to re-enter the house, he blocked her from doing so. She managed to get her right arm in the sliding door of the unit but Woodbury slammed it shut “causing immediate pain”.

“The defendant struggled with the victim and the defendant dragged the victim away from the back sliding door and pushed her to the ground,” the fact sheet reads.

Lying on the ground, the partner crawled into the unit. When Woodbury tried to stop her, he fell to the ground himself. He got up, and stood on her stomach.

“The victim screamed out in fear and pain, trying to remind the defendant that she was pregnant,” the fact sheet reads.

“The victim struggled again and worked her way further into the unit, crawling on the ground, which ended with her falling back on to the youngest child on the couch.”

Woodbury began throwing items at his partner from the kitchen while continuing to swear at her. She eventually called the police when the eldest child began talking to his father.

While waiting for them to arrive, Woodbury continued to swear and throw things at her.

He was taken to the Alice Springs Watch House and held due to his intoxication level of 0.154BAC.

Later, when conducting a police interview, he was asked why he called his partner the degrading name multiple times. “I can’t even remember,” he said.

He was asked why he slammed the door on her arm. He said: “Can’t answer, don’t know why.”

Police asked why he pushed her to the ground and stood on her stomach. “Not too sure … can’t remember,” he answered. Asked why he threw items at her in the kitchen, he said “Can’t remember, very stupid”.

Police finally asked why he assaulted his partner. “No excuse for what I done,” he said. “Not sure why I did it. I need help. I don’t drink that much, I don’t know.”

Woodbury on October 23, 2020, was sentenced to the 12-month good behaviour bond and made to pay a $150 fine for the sole charge of aggravated assault, to which he had pleaded guilty. No conviction was recorded but the matter returned to court on May 26, 2021, and he was given another $50 fine in relation to the same file.

Woodbury disclosed the incident when he was appointed as a board member last year.

The Australian understands he was voted chair by company directors in March.

“The NAAJA board is aware that Hugh Woodbury was involved in a historic incident involving a partner, for which he was fined $200 and issued a good behaviour bond,” a statement from the board, in response to questions from The Australian, reads.

“Importantly, no conviction was recorded. Mr Woodbury abided by the conditions of the bond without issue, including completing counselling. He had the support of his partner throughout the process.”

In November last year, NAAJA announced it would stop taking on new criminal matters in Alice Springs until the end of the year because of a critical staff shortage, forcing Aboriginal people accused of crimes in Australia’s most dangerous jurisdiction to represent themselves in court.

The Australian in February revealed the organisation still hadn’t formally started taking on new clients and did not know when services would fully recommence, despite lawyers on the ground trying their hardest to help the people in front of them. In March, NAAJA began taking on youth clients again.

Adult matters recommenced shortly after.

Former acting CEO Darryl Pearce told The Australian earlier this year that staff predominantly left the organisation from being burnt out. “When you’re taking on 30, 40, 50 matters regularly, it just wears you down,” he said.

The mass exodus of staff also came amid extensive reporting in The Australian of claims of corruption, fraud, bullying and drug use within the NAAJA, including serious allegations that former Ms Atkins, CFO Madhur Evans and Ms Rosas misused thousands of dollars in taxpayer funds.

Former NAAJA chair Colleen Rosas.

Former NAAJA chief executive Priscilla Atkins.

The claims included that Ms Evans in her role as finance chief secretly funnelled $20,000 into the bank account of chair Ms Rosas, who had requested her pay be given to her on a credit card so as not to alert the Tax Office and threaten her Centrelink pension.

The allegations arose during a Federal Court case brought by former chief executive Ms Atkins, who claims she was sacked after she discovered corruption by Ms Evans and Ms Rosas.

Ms Evans and Ms Rosas deny the allegations, and say Ms Atkins used company funds to purchase multiple cars including a $129,000 Range Rover, and forged Ms Rosas’s signature on her contract extension document, securing her position as CEO – and $350,000 salary – for a further five years. Ms Atkins denies wrongdoing.

The NT Police wrapped up investigations into allegations made by Ms Atkins against Ms Rosas and Ms Evans and found no wrongdoing.

The outcome of the Federal Court case is pending.

NAAJA is currently being provided $83m under the five-year National Legal Assistance Partnership, which is set to expire in 2025. The NT government is responsible for administering the federal funds.

The Standing Council of Attorneys-General will reassess a new NLAP arrangement soon, after the federal government ­tabled an independent report into the funding agreement ­earlier this year.