Jesse Hockenbury #

Introduction #

Jesse Hockenbury is a Northern Kentucky attorney and former Highland Heights city council member whose political career ended weeks after he was convicted of sexual abuse. Hockenbury, 32, was elected to the Highland Heights city council in 2024 and worked as an attorney in the area, after serving as a former Campbell County Republican Treasurer. In July 2026, court records show, he entered an Alford plea to a third-degree sexual abuse charge brought over allegations that he grabbed a former legal client’s crotch and solicited sex from her, and on September 1 he announced his resignation from the council, effective October 1, 2026. City leaders had publicly urged him to step down, and the council had begun moving toward a removal hearing when his resignation letter arrived.

Background Information #

Hockenbury worked as a practicing attorney in the Northern Kentucky area and had served as the Campbell County Republican Treasurer before entering municipal politics. He was elected to the Highland Heights city council in 2024; the Cincinnati Enquirer described him as a Highland Heights councilman since 2025. In his eventual resignation letter he wrote that it had been “an honor” to serve the residents of Highland Heights over “the last two years.” In February 2026, while serving on the council, he was arrested and charged with sexual abuse in the third degree after a woman reported unwanted sexual conduct and inappropriate comments from Hockenbury, who at the time was her attorney.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation #

Adjudicated via Alford plea. Hockenbury’s conviction on third-degree sexual abuse is a matter of court record: on July 28, 2026, he entered an Alford plea, a conviction entered without any admission of guilt because he acknowledged that prosecutors had sufficient evidence to convict him. He has never admitted the conduct described below, and the account of the encounter was never tested at trial. That account remains an allegation narrative, recounted publicly by a council member relaying a police briefing.

Hockenbury was arrested in February 2026 and charged with third-degree misdemeanor sexual abuse after a woman accused him of grabbing her crotch and soliciting sex. At an August 4 council meeting, councilwoman Rene Heinrich shared details of the case that she said Highland Heights Police Chief Bill Birkenhauer had shared with the council. According to Heinrich, Hockenbury had provided free legal representation to a woman during her divorce proceedings, and after her final hearing the woman agreed to drive him home because he does not drive. Heinrich said the woman declined Hockenbury’s advances to celebrate the divorce at a bar, and that when the two arrived at Hockenbury’s residence, he grabbed the woman in the crotch area and propositioned her for sex.

On July 28, court records show, Hockenbury entered an Alford plea to the charge. Under an Alford plea, a defendant does not admit guilt but acknowledges that prosecutors have enough evidence to obtain a conviction; LINK nky described the result as accepting “a guilty conviction without admitting to the alleged conduct.” The plea produced a criminal conviction on the misdemeanor while leaving Hockenbury’s denial of the underlying conduct on the record.

Public Reaction and Consequences #

Adjudicated via Alford plea. The conviction driving the reactions below is a matter of court record. The underlying account of the encounter has never been admitted by Hockenbury and reaches the public through a council member’s retelling of a police chief’s briefing, not through trial testimony.

The pressure on Hockenbury built in stages. The last council meeting he attended was on June 2, where several council members asked him to refrain from participating in council business until the criminal case was resolved, citing potential conflicts involving matters related to the Highland Heights Police Department. After court records showed the Alford plea, several council members made public requests calling for his resignation. At the August 4 meeting, the council agreed to move forward with a public hearing to remove Hockenbury from his seat if he did not resign.

Heinrich, one of the more vocal council members, commended his departure: “It’s a shame it took so long, but I am grateful Jesse decided to do the right thing and spare our citizens the cost of a removal action.” At the September 1 council meeting, City Administrator Michael Giffen read a statement from Hockenbury announcing his resignation effective October 1, 2026. “After much consideration, I have decided to step down at this time to focus on personal priorities and my family,” the letter said in part.

Hockenbury was sentenced to 90 days in jail but will not have to serve time unless he violates the court’s conditions within the next two years. Those conditions include having no contact with the woman, remaining at least 500 feet from her, her home and her workplace at all times, and paying $165 in court costs.

Current Status #

Hockenbury’s resignation from the Highland Heights city council takes effect October 1, 2026. In his letter, he committed to working with city administration over the coming weeks to ensure an orderly transition of his duties and to conclude pending administrative business. The Enquirer left a voicemail with Giffen asking whether someone else would fill the seat before the upcoming election and did not immediately receive a response; the council’s next regularly scheduled meeting was set for September 22. For the next two years, Hockenbury remains subject to the court’s conditions, and serving any of the 90-day jail sentence depends on complying with them.

Impact on Their Career/Life #

The conviction and the surrounding pressure ended Hockenbury’s council service roughly two years after he was elected, a tenure that closed not with an admission but with a letter citing “personal priorities and my family.” Because an Alford plea produces a guilty conviction, the third-degree sexual abuse conviction now sits on his record even though he has never admitted the conduct; compliance with the no-contact and 500-foot conditions for two years is what keeps him out of jail. Heinrich framed the resignation as sparing Highland Heights residents the cost of a removal action he might otherwise have faced. Hockenbury continues to work as an attorney in the area, and no disciplinary action against his law license had been reported in the fetched coverage as of September 2026.