Petitioner Aaron J. Esert describes recovery and asks board to reinstate applicator license; decision deferred

A petition hearing for reinstatement of Aaron J. Esert’s applicator license (license no. 52425) was held remotely on March 12, 2025, before Administrative Law Judge Wilbert Bennett and the Structural Pest Control Board. The Office of the Attorney General, represented by Deputy Attorney General Stephanie Lee, introduced the petition package and related court records. After presenting evidence the board accepted the petition package into evidence and heard sworn testimony from Esert. The hearing record was closed and the case was submitted for board deliberation in closed session; the board made no decision at the hearing.

The petition package presented by the Deputy Attorney General included jurisdictional documents, the petitioner’s written petition and supporting material, prior petition and decision records, and multiple criminal court records. The package showed an initial license issued in 2011 on a five-year probationary basis that followed a stipulation listing prior convictions, an accusation and petition to revoke probation in 2013, and a subsequent revocation entered by default. The deputy attorney general noted outstanding cost recovery in the earlier disciplinary matter in the amount of $3,730 and identified several post-discipline criminal convictions and related court files included in the exhibits.

Under oath, Esert described a history of substance use disorders and said his most recent arrest-related incidents dated from earlier years but were resolved in 2024 through work release and payment of fines. He gave a sobriety date of July 1, 2022, and said he had attended 12-step meetings daily since then, served as a sponsor and sponsors others, and participates in community service through the Kiwanis Club. Esert told the board he receives a once-monthly injectable medication for opioid dependence (identified in the hearing as a monthly buprenorphine injection commonly marketed as BRIXADI) and that he is employed by and part owner of a family pest-control business (described in the record as Stop and Go / Stop Pest Control and related family companies). He said he had completed court-ordered NA/AA meetings required by his sentencing and that he has begun the process to seek expungement with public defender assistance.

Board members questioned Esert about the timing and nature of his prior convictions and post-release community supervision violations, his employment role (he testified he currently holds about 10% ownership and manages aspects of the family company), his continuing recovery practices and medication, and whether he would repay outstanding disciplinary costs if reinstated. Esert affirmed he would pay the prior cost recovery and said he would comply with probation terms if the board reinstated his license with probationary conditions.

The hearing concluded with no final vote. Judge Bennett closed the record and submitted the case for deliberation; the board announced it would consider the matter in closed session and issue a decision by mailed notice at a later date.

Provenance: The board’s introduction of the petition for Aaron J. Esert appears in the record when the Administrative Law Judge opened the matter (transcript: "We are here today to review petition for reinstatement of Aaron j Esert") and the hearing concluded with the judge stating the record was closed and the case submitted (transcript: "That concludes the petition hearing in this matter. The record is closed. The case is submitted").