Andrew Trevor Smith
Chief Hearing Officer and Branch Manager
A member of the Kentucky bar, Smith received his bachelor's degree from Transylvania University and graduated from the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law.
He served as staff attorney with the Kentucky Court of Appeals from 1989-1992 and for Appeals Court Judge R. W. Dyche III from 1992-1996.
He is a certified administrative law judge and hearing official and a member of the National Association of Hearing Officials; National Association of Administrative Law Judges; Kentucky Association of Administrative Adjudicators; and the Kentucky Bar Association.
David Bryan Wicker
Staff Attorney Supervisor
A member of the Kentucky bar, Wicker graduated cum laude from Eastern Kentucky University and received his law degree from Duke University School of Law.
He formerly served as legal counsel to the Office of the Petroleum Storage Tank Environmental Assurance Fund; attorney with the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Cabinet; and was an associate with the law firm Wyatt, Tarrant and Combs.
Wicker is a certified hearing official and member of the Kentucky Association of Administrative Adjudicators.
Tracey L. Hitchcock
Hearing Officer
A member of the Kentucky, Florida and U.S. Middle District of Florida bars, Hitchcock is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Kentucky and the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law.
Hitchcock is a former associate with Mensh and MacIntosh law firm and served as an assistant attorney general with the Florida Office of Attorney General.
George Edward Overbey Jr.
Hearing Officer
Overbey is a member of the Kentucky and Ohio bar associations, United States Tax Court, United States District Courts for Kentucky and Ohio, and United States Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.
He graduated cum laude from Murray State University and earned his law degree from the Salmon P. Chase College of Law. He formerly served as assistant trust officer with Fifth-Third Bank in Cincinnati; partner with the law firm Overbey and Overbey in Murray; chairman of the Kentucky Public Service Commission; and deputy general counsel for the Cabinet for Health Services.
Overbey is a member of the United States Marine Corps Reserve, Kentucky and Calloway County Bar Associations and Kentucky Trial Lawyers Associations.
Elizabeth A. Heilman
Hearing Officer
Heilman is a member of the Kentucky bar and has been admitted to practice before the United States District Court, Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky; United States Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals; and United States Supreme Court.
She received a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Kentucky and is a graduate of the University of Kentucky College of Law. A former assistant Jefferson commonwealth’s attorney, Heilman also served as assistant Carroll County attorney; assistant attorney general; deputy general counsel for the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet acting as designated counsel for the Office of the Medical Examiner; and worked in private practice.
Rebecca A. Baylous
Hearing Officer
Baylous is a member of the Kentucky bar and authorized to practice before the United States District Court for Kentucky's Eastern and Western Districts and United States Court of Appeals-Sixth Circuit.
She received a bachelor's degree in fine arts from the University of Kentucky and graduated from the University of Kentucky College of Law. She is a former associate with Wilson and Stanley Law Firm in Lexington and served as staff attorney with the state Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, Department of Corrections.
Julie Ann Ledford
Hearing Officer
Admitted to bar in Kentucky and Ohio, Ledford received a bachelor's degree in English from Xavier University and law degree from the University of Cincinnati College of Law. Previously, she was a staff attorney with the Department for Public Advocacy's London office and senior staff attorney to Court of Appeals Judge Robert W. Dyche, III.
Kris M. Carlton
Hearing Officer
A member of the Kentucky bar, Carlton earned a bachelor’s degree in economics and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Louisville. She received her law degree from the Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville in 1998.
Carlton previously served as a law clerk for the Administrative Hearings Branch and worked at the law firm Lynch, Cox, Gilman and Mahan in Louisville. She has held positions with the City of Louisville Department of Law and the Jefferson County Attorney’s Office where she was a member of the Research Ordinance Commission and Jefferson District Court prosecutor.
Carlton is a past chair of the Kentucky Bar Association Local Government Section and member of the Municipal Attorneys Association of Kentucky. She also has served as a moderator and presenter at various continuing legal education conferences and seminars. She is a recipient of a Business First Forty Under 40 Award and was named one of Louisville Magazine’s 21 Women to Watch in 2003.
Jenny V. Jones
Hearing Officer
A member of the Kentucky bar, Jones graduated magna cum laude from Morehead State University with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. In 2001, she received her law degree from Salmon P. Chase College of Law and earned a master's degree in business administration from Northern Kentucky University.
Jones previously was the director of the Fayette County Bar Association Pro Bono Program; staff attorney for the Kentucky Department of Veterans’ Affairs; and staff attorney for former Court of Appeals Judge David A. Barber.
Steven D. Davis
Hearing Officer
A member of the Kentucky Bar Association, Davis holds bachelor's degrees in political science, policy analysis and business administration finance and a law degree from the University of Louisville.
Davis formerly worked in private practice, as counsel for the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services and held government management positions, including regional program manager, deputy inspector general and inspector general.
Davis is a certified hearing official and a member of the Kentucky Association of Administrative Adjudicators.
Ben Fiechter
Hearing Officer
A member of the Kentucky bar and admitted to practice before the United States District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky, Ben Fiechter is a graduate of Samford University (B.A., History, 2005) and the University of Kentucky College of Law (J.D., 2008).
Before becoming a hearing officer, he practiced in the Cabinet for Health and Family Services Office of Legal Services. Before that, he was an associate with McBrayer, McGinnis, Leslie and Kirkland in Lexington, KY.