A Kentucky mayor is under fire. Here’s what’s happened during his tenure
The London City Council on Monday night levied several allegations against Mayor Randall Weddle as it sought to remove him from office.
Weddle stormed out of the contentious council meeting, but not before council members approved with a 5-1 vote a resolution for a public hearing that could oust Weddle.
Among the allegations were that Weddle lives outside London city limits, improperly removed and appointed city employees, misused police resources and mishandled city funds.
The attempt to remove Weddle is the latest controversy during his three years as mayor in the town of about 7,500 residents.
Previous scrutiny has included defamation lawsuits, a police killing during an attempt to serve a search warrant and large political donations.
Here’s a look back at allegations levied against Weddle.
Defamation lawsuits
Most recently, Weddle’s been at the center of a pair of defamation suits that were filed after he claimed three of his critics were part of a pedophilia ring.
The plaintiffs — brothers John and James Phelps, who filed a joint suit, and Elijah Jarvis — have been longtime critics of Weddle. Their attacks ramped up after police shot and killed resident Doug Harless just before midnight Dec. 23, 2024, while trying to serve a search warrant to a different person.
In a podcast and other public appearances, Weddle accused the three men of being pedophiles.
All three filed lawsuits denying Weddle’s accusations, and they have not been charged with any crimes. But after the suits were filed in mid-February, Weddle doubled down.
He and his personal lawyer, Jeremy Bryant, held a news conference and gave the media hundreds of pages of documents they claimed proved the critics were part of “deep corruption,” including a pedophilia ring in the southeastern Kentucky town.
Jarvis amended his lawsuit after the news conference to include Bryant.
The lawsuit is ongoing, with a hearing scheduled for Aug. 12.
Weddle has tried to file his defamation suits against several London residents who made negative Facebook posts about him. A judge dismissed the lawsuit in July 2024.
Shooting of Doug Harless
Just before Christmas 2024, police fatally shot a man after they executed a search warrant at the home of a man not involved in the investigation.
A mix-up in housing numbers in the rural area led police to the home of Douglas Harless, at 511 Vanzant Road, and police shot and killed him after they said he pointed a gun at them.
According to police dispatch audio and a call log showing police activity that night, officers intended to go to a different house about 250 feet away to serve the warrant late Dec. 23.
London police have released little information while Kentucky State Police investigate the shooting, sparking outrage among many community members and leading to a “Justice for Doug” rally in London.
Political donations and road projects
In August 2023, a $1.1 million state road project for a road near Weddle’s freight and logistics business was suddenly moved up ahead of schedule.
The timing coincided with a political donation Weddle made to Gov. Andy Beshear’s campaign.
The road project was originally scheduled for the 2025 fiscal year, but the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet moved it up to be completed in the 2023 fiscal year instead.
Cabinet officials said the move saved time and money on a necessary project and pointed to the fact that local GOP lawmakers requested it. Some Republicans in the legislature raised concerns about what happened.
At the time, Weddle was already under investigation for potential campaign finance violations from April 2023 when his family members and business associates donated more than $200,000 to the Kentucky Democratic Party. Beshear’s campaign refunded the donations.
He was also under investigation for another potential campaign finance violation from June 2023 when he sponsored a free gasoline giveaway for area residents during his election campaign in 2022.
The same complaint alleged Weddle provided voters with limousine rides to the polls and gave gifts to city and county departments.
The outcome of those investigations was not immediately clear Tuesday morning.
Staff writers Austin Horn and Christopher Leach contributed to this report.
This story was originally published August 5, 2025 at 1:21 PM.
