District 1 Council Member Jessica Green, a Democrat, wants to move from the council chambers to the court house. The two-term councilwoman is not seeking reelection and is instead running for Division 6 Jefferson Circuit Court judge.
Green, who represents neighborhoods in Louisvilles West End, announced her decision in a Facebook post on Thursday. This makes her the third council member choosing not to run for reelection. Council Members Bill Hollander, D-9, and Nicole George, D-21, are stepping aside, too. All odd-number council districts are up for reelection in 2022.
Green was an attorney before running for council in 2014, and she has continued to practice as a council member. Green owns her own practice and specializes in family law and criminal defense. She received her juris doctorate from the University of Kentucky College of Law, and she has worked as an assistant commonwealths attorney in Elizabethtown and Jefferson County, according to her practices website. In Louisville, she was assigned to the county attorney’s domestic violence unit.
Jessica Greens mother, Judy Green, was a longtime former council member for District 1 before being removed for ethics violations.
The judge position Green is running for is currently occupied by Judge Olu Stevens. Stevens, who Green called a friend in her Facebook post, is retiring from his position. Jefferson County Circuit Court is facing an even bigger exodus heading into the 2022 election.
Judge Stevens successor has very big shoes to fill, and it is necessary that this person has had diverse life experiences and diverse legal experiences, said Green in her Facebook post.
Stevens is one of two Black men on the bench in Jefferson Circuit Court. There are no Black women.
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This article appears in September 29, 2021.