On Tuesday, a civil jury of four women and two men awarded $1.7 million in damages to Morristown Officer Keith Hudson, unanimously agreeing he was demoted from the detective bureau in 2015 as retaliation for reporting extra-duty jobs worked by Police Chief Pete Demnitz.
The town argued that Hudson, 38, was out to get Demnitz. But Hudson was busted to the patrol division for allegedly balking at investigating a gunman arrested by the Secret Service inside Headquarters Plaza in July 2015, the chief testified. Demnitz also cited a 2014 episode in which Hudson was sent home for yelling at a superior officer during another investigation.
But Hudson’s legal team of Jeffrey Catrambone and Matthew Curran pointed out that Hudson’s superior officers disagreed with the transfer and considered Hudson a good detective. They noted discrepancies between the chief’s version of the HQ Plaza events and Capt. Michael Buckley’s, and alleged inconsistencies between sworn statements and court testimony by former town Administrator Michael Rogers.
A 2014 conversation in which Demnitz told Hudson he wasn’t the same cop he used to be, and another in which an officer asked Hudson if he were committing career suicide, indicated it was no secret that Hudson’s cover was blown as the whistleblower who that year launched a brief investigation of Demnitz by the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office, Hudson’s lawyers argued.
These interactions, and assorted other communications, added up to a pattern of harassment culminating in Hudson’s demotion, causing him emotional distress and the loss of stipends, personal use of a town vehicle and extra pension benefits — losses that an economist testified would amount to about $200,000 over the course of Hudson’s career.
Town officials said they are exploring whether to appeal.
Here are some key moments from Tuesday’s summations. First, the town’s defense, by attorney Brent Davis:
Defense: ‘It’s that simple’: Why the chief removed Detective Keith Hudson:
Defense: No evidence chief knew whistleblower’s identity:
Defense: The chief was concerned about recent mass shootings
And here are summations by Hudson’s lawyer, Jeffrey Catrambone:
Plaintiff: HQ Plaza arrest is not the reason for detective’s demotion:
Plaintiff: Superior officers spoke glowingly of Keith Hudson:
Plaintiff: Questions testimony of county investigator and former administrator:
From earlier in the trial, here are Demnitz and Hudson on the witness stand, before Superior Court Judge Louis Sceusi in Morristown.
Chief Demnitz defends reassignment of detective:
Officer Keith Hudson testifies about concerns about Secret Service: