Zachary Rolfe launches civil action against NT Police

A motion filed in the Supreme Court at Darwin states Constable Zachary Rolfe – who fatally shot Kumanjayi Walker at Yuendumu – wants 25 alleged breaches of discipline overturned.

Constable Rolfe is seeking to have decisions about disciplinary proceedings overturned on three separate grounds. Picture: Amanda Parkinson

Constable Zachary Rolfe – who fatally shot Kumanjayi Walker at Yuendumu – has launched civil action against the Northern Territory Police Commissioner in a bid to quash dozens of disciplinary breaches.

A directions hearing in the Alice Springs Supreme Court on Wednesday was held in closed chambers but acting associate Justice Meredith Huntingford has since released the originating motion to The Australian.

The document, filed in the Supreme Court at Darwin on December 11, states that Constable Rolfe wants 25 alleged breaches of discipline – investigated by NT Police’s Professional Standards Command between 2020 and 2022 – overturned on a variety of legal grounds.

Constable Rolfe claims the internal disciplinary unit made a litany of legal errors in investigating his alleged breaches, including relying on material illegally obtained from his mobile phone.

Constable Rolfe’s lawyer, Luke Officer, also states, in the court document, that disciplinary actions had not commenced within six months of discovery and the hearing officer had no jurisdiction to hear and determine the disciplinary actions.

Police Commissioner Jamie Chalker is the defendant in the matter.

“This proceeding by originating motion has been brought against you by the plaintiff for the relief or remedy set out below,” the originating motion states.

The application sets out that the plaintiff, Constable Rolfe, is seeking “relief by way of orders in the nature of declarations and certiorari”.

Certiorari is a mechanism by which courts can quash decisions made by public servants if they are proven to have acted improperly.

Constable Rolfe is seeking to have decisions about disciplinary proceedings overturned on three separate grounds: that disciplinary action was not commenced within six months of discovery, jurisdictional errors and the considering of evidence obtained from his mobile phone.

The originating motion states that phone material – subsequently used as evidence in disciplinary proceedings – was extracted from Constable Rolfe’s iPhone without a warrant after his arrest on November 13, 2019, over Walker’s death.

“No warrant was executed to seize the mobile telephone, nor was a warrant executed to permit the search or extract material stored on the mobile,” the motion said.

“The material was viewed and interrogated by investigators with the Northern Territory Police over a period of months between 2020 and 2021 from both the coronial investigation team and the criminal investigation team.”

Detectives then provided that “material” to PSC investigators.

A disciplinary breach decision, dated June 10 last year, stated that the hearing officer considered evidence obtained from Rolfe’s mobile telephone in determining his guilt.

“In so determining the hearing officer misapprehended the limits of the power to obtain and use that evidence … (The Act) did not authorise its use for the purpose of disciplinary proceedings,” the motion said.

Lawyer Luke Officer also claimed police failed to commence action over 25 alleged breaches of discipline within the required timeframe.

Under the Police Administration Act, disciplinary action must commence within six months of the initial discovery.

Constable Rolfe denied the 25 disciplinary breach allegations, which date back to November 2020.

The motion includes the dates that the disciplinary notices were served on Constable Rolfe but nature or dates of the actual alleged breaches were omitted.

The proceeding was adjourned until March 17 when a date for the civil sitting in April is likely to be confirmed.

“The matter is before the court and we won’t be providing comment,” said an NT Police spokesperson.