Leaders ‘compromised’ by NT police commissioner Jamie Chalker case

The Northern Territory Chief Minister has dragged the Prime Minister and Attorney-General into her legal stoush with the Police Commissioner.

NT police commissioner Jamie Chalker. Picture: Julianne Osborne

Northern Territory Labor Chief Minister Natasha Fyles has dragged Anthony Albanese and Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus into her legal stoush with the NT Police Commissioner after accusing him of making her federal leaders feel “compromised”.

Ms Fyles had attempted to ­quietly sack Commissioner Jamie Chalker last month – just six months from the end of his four-year term – but it backfired and wound up in the NT Supreme Court to play out publicly.

In an undated letter delivered to Mr Chalker on March 31, Ms Fyles asked him to resign and set out the reasons why she had lost confidence in him in the form of four allegations. Her main issue was she claimed he had requested the Australian Defence Force be deployed to Alice Springs to help manage increasing crime there, without having the authority to make such a request.

During a Supreme Court hearing last week, Mr Chalker’s barrister, Arthur Moses SC, revealed that Ms Fyles also mentioned the Prime Minister and Mr Dreyfus in her letter.

“In the undated letter, the Chief Minister raised four allegations which the Chief Minister signed off on, presumably with an evidentiary basis for it, even though it is now conceded that it was wrong to suggest that the commissioner had asked the Australian Defence Force to go into Alice Springs and that this had caused the Prime Minister and federal Attorney-General to feel compromised,” Mr Moses said.

“We now know that was false. There is an assertion … they meant to refer to the (Australian) Federal Police. I’m not sure how that could have got itself so horribly wrong, but even that allegation is denied.”

Mr Dreyfus said he would not comment on the matter because it was before the courts, while Mr Albanese’s office did not respond to questions.

The Australian has confirmed that Mr Chalker did not request help with crime from either commonwealth agency.

NT Police said last week the only time it had sought assistance from the ADF was to provide ­“logistical support” during the evacuation of flood-affected communities earlier this year. “There have been no requests to ADF or AFP from the NT Police for assistance relating to crime,” the spokesperson said. “In all the commissioner’s interviews in 2023 with the public discussion surrounding federal support, Mr Chalker is on record as very against the need for ADF assistance to support crime.”

The AFP declined to comment but sources said the agency had not received any requests for ­assistance from Mr Chalker or anyone else within the NT Police.

NT government sources have said that prior to Ms Fyles asking Mr Chalker to resign, she and her staff had been mapping out solutions to the Alice Springs crisis – including calling in the ADF – on whiteboards in her ­office.

After receiving Ms Fyles’ letter on March 31, Mr Chalker made it clear he would not go quietly, by launching legal action against Ms Fyles, Police Minister Kate Worden and the NT government to prevent his dismissal. He hired top Sydney legal duo Mr Moses and Rebekah Giles.

Mr Chalker filed a motion, ­obtained by The Australian, in the NT Supreme Court this month seeking a declaration that the government had no power to revoke his appointment and that he be “afforded procedural fairness and natural justice” before the Chief Minister or Police Minister was allowed to recommend his employment be terminated.

The motion also sought an order that Ms Fyles provide the particulars in relation to the allegations in her letter, and that the defendants be prevented from taking any steps to revoke his ­appointment until he has had an opportunity to respond to the ­allegations.

Last week, Mr Moses asked judge John Reeves for an urgent three-day hearing, which has since been set down for June 7.

The NT government could face legal action on multiple fronts over the matter and could end up paying civil redress for breach of contract, tortious interference with the commissioner’s contract, breach of duty of care and defamation.

Ms Fyles refused on Tuesday to explain why Mr Albanese or Mr Dreyfus had felt compromised, saying it would be inappropriate to comment on a matter before the courts. “We continue to negotiate with Commissioner Chalker,” she said.

Mr Chalker has declined interview requests, and his lawyers ­declined to comment.