Mike Westling
Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney
Michael W. Westling is one of the most experienced prosecutors in the Kenton Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, now serving his second stint in the office.
Westling originally served as an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney from 1979 to 1999, when he retired as a prosecutor. He then went to work for Deters Benzinger & Lavelle (now known as DBL Law) for 12 years, where he practiced medical malpractice defense work, often representing St. Elizabeth Healthcare, as well as serving as a federal public defender for three years.
In the fall of 2016, Westling returned to the Commonwealth’s Attorney Office on a volunteer basis to cover preliminary hearings for Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Frank Trusty, who was ill. Westling previously worked for Trusty when he served as Kenton Commonwealth’s Attorney. Trusty later became a Kenton District Court Judge.
“Because Frank was not able to return to his position because of his illness, I was hired in 2017 on a part-time basis to handle preliminary hearings and I’ve continued to serve in that capacity since that time,” Westling said.
Westling covers preliminary hearings on Tuesdays and Thursdays and attends the Commonwealth’s Attorney staff meetings on Fridays to provide case assessments, if needed.
Westling is a graduate of the University of Kentucky and obtained his law degree in 1974 from Salmon P. Chase College of Law at Northern Kentucky University. He’s been admitted to practice law in Kentucky since 1976 and Ohio since 1974.
