The Bachelorette alum James McCoy Taylor arrested for assault amid Taylor Frankie Paul fallout

1 week ago 8

By CASSIE CARPENTER, US SHOWBUSINESS REPORTER

Published: 16:42 GMT, 22 March 2026 | Updated: 16:47 GMT, 22 March 2026

Ousted Bachelor Nation star James McCoy Taylor was arrested yet again in his native Texas last Friday.

The troubled 39-year-old's two charges - assault causing bodily injury and unlawful restraint - stem from an April 24, 2024 incident where a 19-year-old Blinn College student alleged he threw her to the ground and forcibly kissed her and groped her crotch as she was trying to leave.

Taylor was booked and released last Friday on a $10,000 surety bond, but no other details were provided on the arrest report.

The Daily Mail has reached out to Taylor and the Brazos County Sheriff's Office for comment.

The accuser - who was able to escape in an Uber - suffered multiple contusions visible on her hip and buttocks, and she provided text messages she had sent to a friend at the time including 'Please come get me' and 'I'm not ok' and 'He's forcing himself on me.'

Curiously, the Rex Roofing & Solar sales manager already pleaded guilty to the same charges last year and was sentenced to 80 hours of community service, a $750 fine, $350 in court costs, anger management classes and ordered to have no contact with the victim.

Ousted Bachelor Nation star James McCoy Taylor was arrested yet again in his native Texas last Friday

Taylor - who called the incident 'enjoyable and consensual' - was also banned from the Northgate Entertainment District - according to KBTX.

'Trust me if there were any injuries they'd be all over the internet,' the MAGA country crooner told KBTX in a statement in 2024.

'I would never hurt anybody. I'm nice to every person I meet. That's my statement. Now go ahead and trash my life because you hate my political stances or for the views, you'll get on TikTok.'

Taylor was also arrested by Blinn College police in 2022 for DWI and unlawful carrying of a weapon.

Inside the Victor Marx campaigner's truck the officer discovered an 'impaired' 18-year-old college freshman, who was likely enrolled at the nearby Texas A&M University.

Taylor claimed he was driving her back to her dorm room, but police noted that the teenager 'was not in any kind of condition to appraise the benefits and risks of the situation she was in.'

In 2023, the Harding University grad was found guilty and sentenced to five days in the Brazos County Detention Center as well as paying a $500 fine, $585 in court costs and having his driver's license temporarily suspended.

Taylor got into hot water in January 2021 for promoting the Save America rally in Washington, DC, which led to the insurrectionist Capitol attack.

Bachelor Nation creator Mike Fleiss tweeted on January 13, 2021: 'Whoever that former cast member/idiot jerkoff is that went to Trump's treasonous rally, got a message for ya... You are officially exiled from #BachelorNation!'

The troubled 39-year-old's two charges - assault causing bodily injury and unlawful restraint - stem from an April 24, 2024 incident where a 19-year-old Blinn College student alleged he threw her to the ground and forcibly kissed her and groped her crotch as she was trying to leave 

Taylor was booked and released last Friday on a $10,000 surety bond, but no other details were provided on the arrest report (pictured March 10)

The Rex Roofing & Solar sales manager was also arrested by Blinn College police in 2022 for DWI and unlawful carrying of a weapon (as well as an 'impaired' 18-year-old college freshman)

Taylor first found fame in 2016 competing for the heart of JoJo Fletcher (L) in the 12th season of ABC's The Bachelorette, but he was eliminated in week seven 

Last Thursday, ABC pulled the entire $30 million-budget, season 22 of The Bachelorette from airing Sunday following the leak of cell phone footage of her injuring her babydaddy Dakota Mortensen and her daughter Indy in a 2023 aggravated assault arrest 

The Great Again... Again singer - who calls twice-impeached President Donald Trump his 'hero' - has since confirmed that he never even attended the January 6th rally.

Taylor and fiancée Kenzie Linden welcomed their first child together, daughter Kobe, on October 20 - one year after meeting.

Linden also has three older daughters - Ellie, Oakley, Payson and Lainey - from a prior marriage.

The duck and boar hunter - who commands $38.50 on Cameo - first found fame in 2016 competing for the heart of JoJo Fletcher in the 12th season of ABC's The Bachelorette, but he was eliminated in week seven.

Last Thursday, ABC pulled the entire $30 million-budget, season 22 of The Bachelorette from airing Sunday following the leak of cell phone footage of her injuring her babydaddy Dakota Mortensen and her daughter Indy in a 2023 aggravated assault arrest.

It made loyal fans of the dating competition question why a major network would ignore someone's violent criminal past and transform them into an eligible partner for contestants - male or female.

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