Lexington candidate facing felony charges may not live in district he’s running for
A Lexington council candidate who was recently charged with felony assault may not live in the council district he has filed to run in, according to court records.
Matt Miniard, 69, of Lexington, was charged with second-degree assault Feb. 14. During a Feb. 20 court hearing, Lexington police officers said they were dispatched to the 100 block of Burley Avenue, after Miniard called 911 and said he was attacked, according to Lexington police who testified during the hearing. Miniard told officers he returned home after a long day of work and found chores he had asked the victim to do had not been done.
That address, which is listed as Miniard’s home address in court records, is not in the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council’s 9th Council District. Miniard filed to run in that district, which includes neighborhoods in southwest Lexington between Nicholasville and Harrodsburg roads, on Dec. 30.
Other court cases that Miniard has faced in 2025 also show Miniard’s address as being on Burley Avenue, outside the 9th District.
Why Lexington candidate’s address could be a problem
Fayette County Clerk Susan Lamb said the merged government charter says a candidate has to live in a council district for six months prior to filing to run for office. Burley Avenue is in the 10th Council District, according to council district maps.
Miniard did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
Burley Avenue or Overview Drive?
Miniard changed his voter registration to an address in the 800 block of Overview Drive on Dec. 3, less than 30 days before he filed to run for the 9th District seat, according to his voter registration card.
Fayette County Property Value Administration records show a trust controlled by Miniard owns the home on Overview Drive, which is in the 9th District. That same trust also owns the home on Burley Ave., according to PVA records. Property records show Miniard’s mailing address as a P.O. Box.
His 2017 voter registration card showed the Burley Avenue home as his home address.
Other court records also indicate Miniard was using the Burley Avenue home as his home address in 2025.
Miniard was charged with harassment of a tenant in February 2025, a charge that was eventually dismissed. The police citation lists the Burley Avenue home as his home address.
Police also listed the Burley Avenue address as his home for two different traffic citations six months before he filed to run. Those incidents include a July 29 citation for reckless driving and failure to provide proof of insurance, which were both eventually dismissed, and an Oct. 24 ticket for disregarding a traffic control device and failing to provide insurance. Those charges were also dismissed, according to court records.
Lamb said someone living in the 9th District would have to file a civil lawsuit challenging Miniard’s residency for Miniard to be removed from the ballot.
Lexington Councilwoman Whitney Elliott Baxter, who has held the 9th District seat since she was first elected in 2020, said based on news reports about his Feb. 14 arrest, she shares concerns Miniard “may not be a 9th District resident and an eligible candidate.”
More on Matt Miniard’s latest case
When officers arrived to the Burley Avenue home on Feb. 14, they found Miniard pinning the victim to the ground, according to court testimony.
“Mr. Miniard had his hands placed on the other subject’s arms, holding them down, and his knees placed around the subject’s chest area,” said Angela Lopez-Cruz, a Lexington police officer called to the scene.
Police also allege Miniard used a piece of house trim to attack the victim, which caused injuries that necessitated the victim going to the hospital.
Fayette District Judge Melissa Murphy sent the case to the grand jury, which will decide whether to indict Miniard on the second-degree assault charges.
Long history of harassment, other problems
Miniard’s Feb. 14 arrest is the latest in a long history of legal woes that have included accusations of harassment and stalking.
He previously served on the Fayette County Conservation District board, but he was removed in 2023 after failing to sign his oath of office.
Before Miniard’s ouster from the conservation board, he was accused of harassing a fellow conservation board member, including driving past the board member’s house and allegedly threatening to kill him, according to court documents. He has also been accused of aggressive behavior toward tenants and former girlfriends.
He spent time in jail in 2013 for failing to follow a protective order.
Can Miniard run for office while facing felony charges?
The Kentucky Constitution bars people who have been convicted of a felony from holding office.
The constitution says: “All persons shall be excluded from office who have been, or shall hereafter be, convicted of a felony, or of such high misdemeanor as may be prescribed by law, but such disability may be removed by pardon of the Governor.”
Miniard has not been convicted of a felony, however.
“It remains to be seen whether Mr. Miniard will be convicted of a felony,” said Susan Straub, a spokeswoman for the city. “If he is not, it would be difficult to bar or remove him from office as his alleged crime did not take place as part of the discharge of any elected duties.”
It’s not clear when Miniard’s next court date will be. That will depend on whether a grand jury chooses to indict him. The general election is Nov. 3.
The last elected Fayette County official to be convicted of a felony was former Councilwoman Sasha Love Higgins, who pleaded guilty in August 2017 to three felonies and two misdemeanors in relation to cashing bogus payroll checks while she worked as a manager at a Lexington hotel. Love Higgins voluntarily resigned from the position after she was indicted by a grand jury.
This story was originally published February 24, 2026 at 11:32 AM.
