Former college football player and NFL scout Blaise Taylor is on trial for allegedly poisoning his pregnant girlfriend, Jade Benning, with a fatal dose of cocaine. Prosecutors contend that Taylor, 30, intentionally administered the drug to Benning, who was five months pregnant, in February 2023.
Investigators told the jury this week that Benning had expressed in text messages her intent to continue the pregnancy despite Taylor's alleged desire for her to have an abortion. In a message to a friend, Benning wrote, "I'm going to tell him today that I'm not having the abortion… so he can just get it out of his head." In a separate message to Taylor, she stated, "I will not involve you at all. I will love this child unconditionally with or without you."
Taylor's defense team suggests he later expressed a desire to reconcile and work on their relationship. However, prosecutors argue that his unwillingness to be a father was the motive behind the alleged poisoning.
On February 25, 2023, Taylor reportedly called 911, stating Benning was experiencing an allergic reaction. Benning's fetus, named Ivy, died two days later on February 27. Benning herself passed away on March 6, her 25th birthday. An investigation by authorities determined that Benning had been poisoned without her knowledge.
A medical examiner testified in court, describing the cocaine levels found in Benning's system as unprecedented. "I could not recall anything this high," stated Dr. Erin Carney, noting 1,787 nanograms of cocaine per milliliter of blood. Carney concluded, "Acute cocaine toxicity caused Miss Benning to die" and that the circumstances of her ingestion were "very concerning." While the specific cause of the unborn baby's death could not be determined, the medical examiner believes cocaine was likely a contributing factor, as the drug is known to cause pregnancy loss.
Taylor was arrested in March 2024 on four counts of murder and released on a $2.5 million bond in April 2024, requiring him to wear a GPS monitor. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. Prosecutors are seeking a sentence of life in prison without parole if convicted.