Lawmaker says fired Hampton aide wanted to protect sex offenders; Southworth denies claim

A Kentucky legislator says he met with Lt. Gov. Jenean Hampton's fired aide, Adrienne Southworth, and alleges the deputy advocated for expanding parole reform to cover a class of sex offenders, apparently backing up a reason the Bevin administration gave for her termination.

Southworth, Hampton's former deputy chief of staff, was fired in late May, a move authorized by Gov. Matt Bevin's Chief of Staff Blake Brickman. 

Southworth told the Courier Journal on Sunday that she met with Kentucky state Rep. John Blanton but denied proposing or suggesting House Bill 189 should include a class of sexual offenders.

"No, I didn't make a proposal at all, on that or anything else," Southworth said in a phone interview.

Blanton told the Courier Journal on Sunday that Southworth requested a meeting with him to discuss the bill, which Blanton sponsored, that deals with parole reform. 

"I accepted the meeting and listened to her concerns and her proposal to add a certain class of sexual offenders to the be covered under the reforms," Blanton said in a statement. "I disagreed with her position and contacted the Bevin Administration to see if this was part of their policy proposal and was told it was not. The legislation was passed and signed into law without her proposed amendments."

Gov. Matt Bevin's chief of staff:I fired Jenean Hampton's aide. Here's why.

Southworth said she didn't have a proposal but was asking Blanton whether he was filing the same bill or if it had changes.

"He said, 'I'm filing the same bill if they want me to and I don't see any changes and they're working on it,'" Southworth said. "And so we clarified later there would be no changes. So it was the same bill in 2018 and 2019."

In a statement released Saturday regarding Southworth's termination, Brickman said the reason for Southworth's termination was her repeated demonstrations of poor judgment, including unauthorized efforts to lobby state legislators "in an effort to pass legislation that provides more leniency for convicted sex offenders who violate their parole."

Southworth denied she advocated for leniency for sex offenders and assumed Brickman was referring to her efforts related to a justice reform bill.

Related:Hampton's aide was investigating Gov. Bevin's authority before she was fired

Prominent Kentucky Republicans, namely CNN contributor Scott Jennings, have said Hampton should resign if the Bevin administration's version of events were true. He described Southworth on Twitter as "an apparent apologist for rapists and sex offenders."

"Not for nothing, but if the Lieutenant Governor of (Kentucky) and her staff were lobbying for leniency for rapists, she ought to resign and allow Governor Bevin to appoint someone who aligns with his agenda," Jennings tweeted.

Tom Loftus and Phillip M. Bailey contributed reporting.

Reach Courier Journal intern Laurel Deppen at ldeppen@gannett.com or follow her on Twitter at @Laurel_Deppen.