A former NFL scout has been sentenced to two consecutive life terms for the murder of his pregnant girlfriend and her unborn child. Blaise Taylor, who previously worked as a scout for the Tennessee Titans, was convicted of fatally poisoning Jade Benning.
Jurors deliberated for two hours before unanimously convicting Taylor on multiple counts, including first-degree murder and felony murder. They recommended life in prison for the crimes.
Prosecutors alleged that Taylor intentionally administered a lethal dose of cocaine to Benning during a visit to her Nashville apartment on February 25, 2023. Benning died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center on March 6, 2023, which was her 25th birthday.
During the sentencing hearing, Taylor's defense team submitted 87 letters attesting to his character, with authors describing him as honest, selfless, and trustworthy. However, prosecutors noted that none of these letters mentioned Benning or their unborn child, referred to as "baby Ivy."
"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," said Nashville Assistant District Attorney Jan Norman. Some of Benning's family members, including her mother, delivered victim impact statements.
Taylor's attorney stated that the trial was flawed and that they intend to appeal the verdict and sentence, expressing disappointment but not surprise at the outcome.
At the time of the murder, Taylor was employed as a defensive analyst at Utah State University. Prior to that, he was a four-year defensive back starter at Arkansas State.