NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A former college football player and scout for the Tennessee Titans was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison for poisoning his pregnant girlfriend, causing her death and that of her unborn child.
Blaise Taylor, 30, was found guilty of poisoning Jade Benning, 24, who was five months pregnant, with a lethal dose of cocaine during a date night at her Nashville apartment on Feb. 25, 2023, WKRN reported.
Prosecutors said the child was fathered by Taylor, according to USA Today
Former Titans scout Blaise Taylor was found guilty of murdering a woman who prosecutors said was pregnant with a child he fathered. https://t.co/C5CQtLe9Ua
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) July 2, 2026
A jury deliberated for less than three hours after the eight-day trial to deliver a guilty verdict on three of four charges, the newspaper reported.
Taylor originally faced four total counts of murder – two for first-degree murder and two for felony murder.
For sentencing, the jury said that Taylor deserved life in prison for three of the counts:
- One count of premeditated first-degree murder of Benning’s unborn child.
- One count of felony murder for Benning.
- One count of felony murder for the unborn child.
Prosecutors alleged that Taylor poisoned Benning by lacing her pink lemonade drink with cocaine dissolved in alcohol, WZTV reported. They stated that his motive for killing her was that he did not want the child, according to the television station.
Investigators said that Benning died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville on March 6, 2023, her 25th birthday, WKRN reported. The 5-month-old fetus died on Feb. 27, 2023, according to the television station.
Taylor started as a defensive back at Arkansas State from 2014 to 2017. He was hired by Texas A&M’s defensive staff on March 6, the one-year anniversary of Benning’s death.
The Titans employed Taylor as a scout for four years. He also worked as a senior defensive analyst at Utah State University, WKRN reported.
Benning’s parents were elated with the verdict and sentence.
“One whole year we have had to live in silent pain, but we are just very glad we finally got the justice,” Benning’s mother, Bridget Burks, told WZTV.
“Definitely glad everything is over and justice is served” Benning’s father, Dennis Browning, told the television station.
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