Assault charge on Lexington council candidate downgraded from felony to misdemeanor
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- The grand jury downgraded the assault charge to misdemeanor on April 27.
- Indictment alleges Miniard caused physical injury to a person by hitting him in the head.
- His Burley Avenue address is in the 10th District; outside where he’s filed to run.
The assault charge against a Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council candidate was downgraded from a felony to a misdemeanor after a decision by the Fayette County grand jury late last month.
Matt Miniard, 69, of Lexington, was charged with second-degree assault Feb. 14 after he allegedly assaulted a man with a piece of house trim at his home on Burley Avenue. The Fayette County grand jury downgraded the assault charge, a class C felony, to fourth-degree assault, a class A misdemeanor, in an April 27 indictment.
The indictment says Miniard “intentionally caused physical injury to another person by hitting him in the head.” A Lexington police officer previously testified one end of the house trim piece was covered in blood, and Miniard threatened to kill the victim during the attack.
Miniard did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his case. His next scheduled court appearance is June 3 for an arraignment, according to court records.
Miniard is running against incumbent Whitney Elliott Baxter for the 9th District council seat. It’s Miniard’s third attempt at winning a council seat after defeats for at-large positions in 2018 and 2022.
Baxter was first elected to the seat in 2020.
However, Miniard’s home address in court records is not in the 9th District, which includes neighborhoods in southwest Lexington between Nicholasville and Harrodsburg roads. Miniard’s Burley Avenue address is in the 10th Council District, according to council district maps.
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. His 2017 voter registration card showed the Burley Avenue home as his home address.
Miniard previously declined to elaborate on which address he resides at.
Miniard previously served on the Fayette County district conservation board but was removed in 2023 after failing to sign his oath of office and allegedly threatening a fellow board member. Before Miniard’s ouster, he was accused of harassing a fellow conservation board member, including driving past their house and allegedly threatening to kill him, according to court documents.
