A controversy erupted just after Tomppert was sworn in, as it was revealed that a council member, N.S. Glore, had accepted a $5,000 bribe from the president of Louisville & Portland Railroad, Isham Henderson, to approve a street railway along Market Street. Though the council approved it, Tomppert refused to sign the law because of the bribe. As a result, the council impeached him for "neglect of duty" and voted him out by a 10-2 margin on December 28, 1865.
