One of Taylor Frankie Paul’s suitors on her would-be season of The Bachelorette was involved in the 2014 car accident that left former Republican congressman Madison Cawthorn paralyzed.
Brad Ledford was among the contestants on season 22 of The Bachelorette, which was scheduled to premiere Sunday, March 22.
“Lassoing for love! If Taylor is searching for a handsome California cowboy, she won’t have to look any further than Brad,” the 29-year-old’s official ABC bio read. “His best friend is his horse, Gus, whom he partners with on all his cowboy jobs. When he’s not on the ranch, Brad enjoys swing dancing, hanging at the beach and listening to Adele.”
The description added, “This fearless romantic is ready to start a family and prides himself on being a generous, loving partner. We can’t wait to see if he can giddy up his way into our Bachelorette’s heart.”
In addition, Brad’s career was listed as “cowboy/entrepreneur.”
Almost 12 years before Brad’s Bachelor Nation journey, he was involved in the accident that left Madison, 30, in a wheelchair. Brad and Madison were 17 and 18, respectively, when their car crashed. (Brad was operating the vehicle at the time of the incident.)
“He was my brother, my best friend, and he [left] me in a car to die in a fiery tomb,” Madison — who left Congress in January 2023 after losing the May 2022 Republican primary — claimed during a 2017 speech at Patrick Henry College. “He runs to safety deep in the woods and just leaves me in a burning car as the flames start to lick my legs and curl up and burn my left side.”
Brad denied that he intentionally abandoned his friend in the aftermath of the wreckage.
“It hurt very badly that he would say something as false as that,” Brad told The Washington Post at the time. “That is not at all what happened. I pulled him out of the car the second that I was able to get out of the car.”
Brad and Madison eventually repaired their friendship with the near-reality star attending Madison’s 2020 election victory party.
“Him and I have been through so much together,” Brad told People in 2021. “I’m still thinking about it, and trying to figure out how I feel about that, or the best way that I think that should be handled. Obviously, I know what he said to me and that’s what really matters, right? He’s apologized for that a number of times, and it seems very genuine.”
Brad’s turn on The Bachelorette has since been scrapped by ABC amid continued domestic violence accusations against leading lady Taylor, 31.
“Taylor is very grateful for ABC’s support as she prioritizes her family’s safety and security,” a spokesperson for the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star told Us Weekly in a Thursday, March 19 statement. “After years of silently suffering extensive mental and physical abuse as well as threats of retaliation, Taylor is finally gaining the strength to face her accuser and taking steps to ensure that she and her children are protected from any further harm.”
Taylor was arrested in 2023 after a physical altercation with then-boyfriend Dakota Mortensen, for which she pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and was subsequently placed on probation. Nearly three years later, footage leaked of the incident showed Taylor assaulting Dakota, 33, and throwing chairs at him while in the presence of her daughter. (Taylor shares Indy, 8, and Ocean, 5, with ex-husband Tate Paul, as well as son Ever, 2, with Dakota.)
Dakota, who has denied any claims about his conduct, was granted a temporary protective order against Taylor on Friday, March 20, that barred any communication between the exes and gave him sole custody of Ever until an April hearing.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential support.
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