Elyria Councilman Mark Jessie pleads no contest to solicitation, gets community service and fine (UPDATED)

Elyria City Councilman Mark Jessie, D-3rd Ward, will avoid jail for soliciting prostitution if he completes 40 hours of community service. Jessie pleaded no contest to solicitation, a misdemeanor, and was found guilty Friday in Judge Gary Bennett's courtroom in Elyria Municipal Court. The hearing was handled by Visiting Judge Paul Lux. A no contest plea means Jessie, 64, does not admit his guilt but does admit the truth of the allegations. The plea also means he retains some rights to appeal. The councilman was one of 161 people arrested over a one-week period this fall as part of "Operation Ohio Knows," the state's largest-ever human trafficking sting. Jessie was taken into custody around 4:30 p.m. Sept. 30 in the 300 block of Washington Avenue in Elyria after soliciting sex from someone he believed to be a sex worker. The sex worker was actually an undercover police officer. Jessie was sentenced Friday to 60 days in jail beginning March 11, but that jail time will be suspended if he can provide proof of the 40 community service hours by March 10, according to a court clerk. Jessie also was ordered to pay a $250 fine plus court costs. He had previously pleaded not guilty Oct. 6 during his initial appearance in Elyria Municipal Court. Jessie will remain a member of Elyria City Council until the year's end. After that, Maurice Corbin III, a Republican, will become the 3rd Ward councilman after defeating Jessie in the Nov. 2 election in a final vote count of 807-401. Jessie had been on Council since 2013. In addition to the 161 people arrested as part of Operation Ohio Knows, 51 potential human trafficking victims were helped, according to a news release from Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost. The statewide operation was a partnership involving nearly 100 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies working with nongovernmental and nonprofit organizations. Fourteen men were arrested on solicitation charges in Elyria as a result of the operation, and six women were identified as potential human trafficking victims were referred to local outreach programs, according to an Elyria Police Department news release. A message seeking comment was left for Jessie on Friday. In a previous statement addressing the solicitation charge, he apologized and said he hoped "this act of poor judgment will not define me in the future." Contact Dylan Reynolds at (440) 329-7123 or dreynolds@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter @drey1357.