Ex-RPD officer tested positive for drug

A former Radcliff Police Department officer voluntarily resigned from duty the same day he tested positive for cocaine, according to records obtained from the city.

Former officer Morgan L. Jones, a 2006 graduate of Taylor County High School in Campbellsville, signed a letter of resignation Nov. 29.

The letter reads, “I, Morgan Jones, do hereby submit my resignation as police officer in the Radcliff Police Department to be effective on the 29th day of November, 2012.”

No reason for the resignation is given on any documents The News-Enterprise obtained in its open records request to the city.

That same day, Jones completed a urine drug test at WorkWell Occupational Health in Elizabethtown. According to a certificate the city received Dec. 10, the test was positive for cocaine.

Efforts by The News-Enterprise to contact Jones were unsuccessful.

Radcliff Police Chief Jeff Cross refused to comment on the reason for the test, citing the city’s policy not to issue statements regarding employee separations.

The results obtained from the city list the reason for testing as “random.”

In a written statement issued Friday, Mayor J.J. Duvall also restated Radcliff’s principle of not commenting on an employee’s separation from city employment.

“I have the utmost confidence in the professionalism and integrity of Chief Cross and the fine officers and staff of the Radcliff Police Department,” Duvall wrote. “Radcliff police risk their lives on a daily basis to protect and serve the citizens of this community and an isolated incident with a former officer should not reflect upon the department as a whole.”

Cross said no criminal charges are expected to be filed against Jones.

Jones was hired Feb. 6, 2011, according to personnel records obtained from the city. He completed Department of Criminal Justice Training at Eastern Kentucky University on June 24, 2011, during which he received the Physical Fitness Excellence Award.

According to an employment contract Jones signed, Radcliff requires officers who receive basic training at the city’s expense to reimburse Radcliff in the event they voluntarily terminate employment.

Because of the length of required training, the contract stipulates the city “desires and intends” to hire only officers who will remain employed for a minimum of three years.

Since Cross assumed his role as chief Sept. 1, 2008, he said he has not experienced similar issues with an officer testing positive for illegal drugs.

Sarah Bennett can be reached at (270) 505-1750 or sbennett@thenews enterprise.com.