Add The New York Post on Google Former NFL scout Blaise Taylor, who was convicted of fatally poisoning his pregnant girlfriend, Jade Benning, and her unborn child in 2023, was sentenced to serve consecutive life sentences in prison during a Wednesday hearing in Nashville.
Jurors deliberated for just two hours before unanimously convicting Taylor of two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of felony murder and recommending life in prison.
Prosecutors alleged Taylor, who was a scout for the Titans from 2019-23, intentionally poisoned Benning with a deadly dose of cocaine during a date night at her Nashville apartment on Feb. 25, 2023.
She later died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center on March 6, 2023, her 25th birthday.
At the hearing, the defense submitted 87 letters speaking to Taylor’s character, describing him as honest, selfless and someone they trusted, according to WKRN.
Prosecutors noted that none of the letters mentioned Benning or “baby ivy.”
“Your honor, the defense just submitted 87 letters all speaking to Mr. Taylor’s character. They describe a man of honor, honesty, a man of great accomplishments and as someone who has faith in the Lord and was raised by a strong family,” said Nashville Assistant District Attorney Jan Norman.
“More than one of the authors of those letters actually stated he is someone they would want their own daughters to marry. The person described in these character letters, the authors themselves, not one mentioned Jade Benning, not one of them mentioned baby Ivy, and not one single letter out of the 87 letters mentioned anything about what Blaise Taylor did.”
Some of Benning’s family members, including her mother, took the stand to provide victim impact statements.
Letitia Quinones-Hollins, an attorney for Taylor, said the trial was flawed and they will appeal.
“We are extremely disappointed but not surprised by the harsh sentence,” Quinones-Hollins said. “This was a flawed trial of a tenuous case, and we will appeal and look forward to doing so.”
Taylor had been working as a defensive analyst at Utah State at the time of the murder.
He was a four-year starter as a defensive back at Arkansas State.
