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Bachelorette Season Axed After Suitor's Past Revealed
24 Mar
Summary
- Suitor Brad Ledford was driving when passenger Madison Cawthorn was paralyzed.
- The Bachelorette's season was canceled days before airing.
- Taylor Frankie Paul faces domestic violence allegations.
The Bachelorette's upcoming season starring Taylor Frankie Paul was canceled on March 19, 2026, just three days before its planned premiere. This decision by Disney Entertainment Television followed the emergence of a significant detail about one of the contestants, Brad Ledford. Ledford, a 29-year-old wrangler from California, was revealed to have been driving a vehicle that crashed in 2014, resulting in the paralysis of his passenger, Madison Cawthorn, a former North Carolina congressman.
At the time of the 2014 accident, Ledford was 17 and Cawthorn was 18. Ledford reportedly fell asleep at the wheel while driving Cawthorn in Florida. The crash left Cawthorn, who now uses a wheelchair, with partial paralysis. Social media users widely discussed the vetting process for the season following this revelation.
The show's cancellation was also concurrent with an ongoing domestic abuse investigation involving Taylor Frankie Paul. Production for her show 'The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives' had halted on March 15, 2026, due to an alleged physical altercation between Paul and her ex-boyfriend, Dakota Mortensen, in 2023. A video surfaced showing Paul attacking Mortensen in the presence of her daughter, leading to her arrest on multiple charges, including aggravated assault and domestic violence.
