Overview
- A Nashville jury found Blaise Taylor guilty on July 1 of four counts tied to the 2023 deaths of Jade Benning and her unborn child, including first-degree murder charges.
- Prosecutors told jurors that Taylor slipped cocaine dissolved in alcohol into Benning’s drink, presented 911 recordings and text messages, and argued he did not want her to carry the pregnancy to term.
- Medical witnesses testified that Benning suffered a fatal combination of a very high cocaine level with alcohol and that the five-month fetus died days after her hospitalization.
- Taylor’s defense said Benning’s own drug use caused her death, Taylor has pleaded not guilty, and his attorneys said they will appeal the verdict.
- Sentencing remains pending and Taylor faces the statutory possibility of life in prison without parole; the case has drawn attention because of Taylor’s ties to college and NFL scouting and the toll the deaths have taken on Benning’s family.