Case involving allegations of sexual misconduct against Lexington councilwoman sealed
The court file alleging sexual misconduct by a Lexington councilwoman has been sealed and removed from Courtnet or KyECourts, Kentucky’s digital court filing system.
How the file was sealed is not clear. All records involving the case are no longer public. The Herald-Leader tried to obtain the record from the Fayette Circuit Court Clerk’s office Wednesday, and a reporter was told it was now confidential.
Lexington-Fayette Urban County Councilwoman Denise Gray was granted an emergency protection order against fellow Councilwoman Brenda Monarrez on Aug. 8. In her petition for a protection order, Gray says Monarrez was sexually aggressive toward her on two different occasions over three years.
No criminal charges have been filed, and the protection order is a civil action.
At an Aug. 20 hearing, Fayette Circuit Judge Traci Brislin decided Monarrez could not attend council meetings in person and must work from home. Monarrez has been attending council meetings virtually since August.
An Oct. 16 hearing -- where both sides would be allowed to testify -- was to determine if the protection order should remain in place. Since the case is sealed, its unclear if the Oct. 16 hearing will be public.
Monarrez has called the claims against her “patently false” and driven by politics.
Edward Cooley, a lawyer for Monarrez, said he could not comment because the case was now sealed.
A lawyer for Gray did not immediately respond to a request Wednesday for comment.
The interpersonal protection order law allows for sealing records if the case involves juveniles. There is also a provision that allows for the order to be expunged from someone’s record in certain circumstances. But it’ does not outline a a procedure to seal interpersonal protection orders.
Michael Abate, a Louisville lawyer for the Kentucky Press Association, said there should have been a hearing to determine if it was in the public’s best interest to keep the court file private. (The Herald-Leader is a member of the association, and its executive editor, Richard Green, is a board member.)
“This should be subject to the standard sealing rules,” Abate said. “That is there should be no sealing without advance notice to the public and media, a hearing, and specific findings on why less restrictive means can’t suffice.”
Since the case is sealed, it is not known if there was a hearing. The Herald-Leader received no notice of a hearing.
Other court cases involving protection orders filed against elected and high-profile officials Kentucky officials have not been sealed.
A 2021 protection order filed against William A. Jones, the former president of Georgetown College, by an employee of the college alleging sexual assault was not sealed. Jones was fired and later sued Georgetown College.
Matt Miniard, a former Fayette County Soil and Water Conservation District supervisor, was ordered to stay away from Chris Rowe, a former soil and water conservation district supervisor, after Miniard threatened Rowe. That 2023 case, involving an interpersonal protection order, also was not sealed.
Miniard is no longer on the board.
In Lexington, Gray, who was first elected in 2022, has no opponent for the Nov. 5 general election.
Monarrez, who was first elected in 2022, faces Emma Curtis in the race to represent the Fourth Council District, which includes neighborhoods between Tates Creek and Nicholasville roads south of New Circle Road.
