Gray’s attorney condemns Mayor and Vice Mayor’s joint statement, criticizes lack of support after ruling

An attorney for Urban County Council member Denise Gray released a statement Friday expressing her dissatisfaction with a joint statement released earlier in the day by Mayor Linda Gorton and Vice Mayor Dan Wu.

“[W]ithout clarification, reading that the Mayor and Vice-Mayor are ‘deeply disturbed by a judge’s recent decision…’, where the Judge made a finding that sexual assault occured [sic] and entered an order to protect Councilwoman Gray, appear they are more concerned that a court proceeding happened at all than my client’s safety or addressing the assaults against Councilwoman Gray,” wrote Cara Stewart, an attorney with Justice & Joy LLC. Stewart emailed the statement to seven Herald-Leader staff members, along with The Lexington Times.

On Wednesday, Fayette Circuit Court Judge Traci Brislin ruled that there was a preponderance of evidence to support Gray’s claim that fellow council member Brenda Monarrez sexually assaulted her on two separate occasions, once in October 2021 and once in August 2024.

In Kentucky, the legal standard of proof in a personal protective order (PPO) case is typically a preponderance of the evidence, according to AppalReD Legal Aid. This means that the petitioner must demonstrate that it is more likely than not that the alleged acts occurred. A preponderance of the evidence is a lower threshold compared to criminal cases, where the standard is “beyond a reasonable doubt.”

No criminal charges have been filed against Monarrez in either case.

A spokesperson for Mayor Gorton declined to comment on Gray’s statement. A spokesperson for Vice Mayor Wu did not respond to an email seeking comment. Neither has released a statement clarifying the original statement.