Taylor Frankie Paul’s Bachelorette contestant Brad Ledford is sharing his story after being involved in a car accident that paralyzed former Congressman Madison Cawthorn.
“It’s tough for me because this was an accident that I was in 12 years ago, so I was 17 years old. So, a very long time ago, but definitely impactful and definitely a big piece of my life,” Ledford, 29, said on the Tuesday, March 31, episode of the “Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast. “I wish that publications wouldn’t be grabbing onto something that’s so old and from my childhood.”
Ledford explained that he was driving with “childhood friend” Cawthorn, who was 18 at the time, from Florida to North Carolina when he briefly “nodded off.” When he woke up, Ledford said the vehicle was “right beside the interstate in the grass.”
“I started slowing down the car, realizing what was going on. We ended up striking a jersey barrier a little further down the road. Came to a stop and my first thought in my head was, ‘Oh, my gosh, we were just in a car accident.’ But not thinking anything was really serious until I reached over to check on my passenger, Madison, and realized that he was knocked out and unconscious,” he said. “I was like, ‘OK, this is a bit more serious.’ While I’m doing that, I’m feeling something hot on my arm and I realized that the whole backseat of the car was on fire. And so I was like, ‘OK, this got a lot more real.’”
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He continued, “I immediately went to getting us out of the situation. Trying to find a way out of the car, the best way ended up being through his window. So, went out his window, came back in, unbuckled Madison, pulled him out. A bystander came up that had seen everything going on, helped me carry him a couple hundred yards away from the car.”
Ledford noted that EMS then came to the scene, but he still was not aware of “exactly how serious the situation was” except for noting that his “best friend” was unconscious. Ledford claimed that he went with Cawthorn, now 30, to the hospital to begin “recovery,” noting that it was a “long road.”
“He ended up being paralyzed from the waist down. Now he’s in the political world and everything and I’m not into politics. I don’t necessarily share his views and whatnot, my views are on my page and that’s about that. But I’m not into politics and whatnot. But I did see him go through a lot when we were kids. He was 18 years old when he started that journey, so I went through a lot with him, adapting to a new life and recovery and going through surgeries and whatnot,” Ledford explained.
He continued, “Definitely learned a lot about life. I think anybody that goes through something like that with a friend, just wants the best from them. Doesn’t matter what kind of politics you’re into, right?”
Years after the incident, Cawthorn — who left Congress in January 2023 after losing the May 2022 Republican primary — claimed that Ledford left him “in a car to die in a fiery tomb.”
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“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,” Cawthorn alleged during a 2017 speech at Patrick Henry College. (Ledford denied this to The Washington Post at the time, calling the idea “false.”)
The pair ultimately repaired their friendship, with Ledford telling People in 2021 that he and Cawthorn “have been through so much together.”
“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,” Ledford said. “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.”
Ledford was cast as a suitor on season 22 of The Bachelorette, which ABC pulled last month amid allegations of a domestic dispute between the lead and ex Dakota Mortensen.
“In light of the newly released video just surfaced today, we have made the decision to not move forward with the new season of The Bachelorette at this time, and our focus is on supporting the family,” a Disney Entertainment Television spokesperson told Us in a statement at the time.
