Former Tennessee Titans scout Blaise Taylor will spend the rest of his life in prison after a Nashville judge handed down life sentences Wednesday in the deaths of his pregnant girlfriend, Jade Benning, and their unborn daughter.
Taylor, 30, received two consecutive life sentences along with an additional 22-year prison term at his September 9 sentencing hearing. The decision followed his July conviction in a case stemming from Benning’s fatal poisoning in February 2023.
A Davidson County jury found Taylor guilty of second-degree murder in Benning’s death, first-degree premeditated murder in the death of the unborn child and two counts of felony murder. Jurors reached the verdict after less than two hours of deliberations.
Taylor previously worked in the Titans’ scouting department for four years. Before his career in the NFL, he played college football at Arkansas State.
Taylor Sentenced After Murder Conviction
Prosecutors argued during Taylor’s trial that he intentionally gave Benning a lethal amount of cocaine on February 25, 2023, while the two were at her Nashville apartment. Benning was approximately 24 weeks pregnant at the time.
Taylor called 911 and initially reported that Benning appeared to be experiencing an allergic reaction. Her condition rapidly deteriorated after she was taken to the hospital. Her unborn daughter, whom Benning planned to name Ivy, died on February 27.
Benning remained hospitalized before dying on March 6, her 25th birthday.
The case eventually led to Taylor’s arrest in 2024 and a high-profile murder trial two years later. Prosecutors maintained that the poisoning was intentional, while Taylor’s defense disputed the prosecution’s account of what happened.
The jury ultimately sided with prosecutors, returning guilty verdicts on all four counts on July 1. Taylor’s legal team has maintained his innocence and intends to appeal.
Benning’s Family Addresses Court Before Sentencing
Wednesday’s sentencing hearing included emotional victim impact statements from members of Benning’s family, including her mother, Bridget Benning Burks.
“What haunts me most is knowing Jade was aware something was wrong,” Burks said. “She knew she was losing control of her body, and before help arrived, she knew something terrible had been done to her and her baby.
“What makes the loss even harder to bare is that Jade believed she was safe. She trusted the person responsible … No parent should have to imagine their child spending their final moments in fear and betrayal from the person she trusted.”
Burks described the continuing pain of losing both her daughter and granddaughter and spoke about the future experiences that her family will never get to share with them.
“I miss my daughter,” Burks said. “I miss her voice, that contagious laugh. I miss knowing that I could call or text her, hear about her day, or simply know she was out living her best life.”
Taylor’s defense, meanwhile, submitted 87 letters supporting his character. According to Nashville Assistant District Attorney Jan Norman, the letters portrayed Taylor as honorable, accomplished and trustworthy, with some writers going as far as saying he was someone they would want their daughters to marry.
Norman called attention to what the letters did not address: Benning, her unborn daughter or Taylor’s actions that resulted in his convictions.
Judge Steve Dozier ultimately ordered Taylor’s life sentences to be served consecutively. In explaining the severity of the punishment, Dozier cited the calculated nature and cruelty of the crimes.
Taylor’s attorney, Letitia Quinones-Hollins, criticized the outcome after the hearing and confirmed that the defense plans to challenge the conviction and sentence through the appeals process.
“We are extremely disappointed but not surprised by the harsh sentence,” Quinones-Hollins said in a statement provided to WKRN. “This was a flawed trial of a tenuous case, and we will appeal and look forward to doing so.”
Taylor Spent Four Years With Tennessee Titans
Taylor’s connection to football stretched well beyond his time with the Titans.
The son of longtime college football coach Trooper Taylor, Blaise played defensive back at Arkansas State from 2014 through 2017 before moving into the personnel side of the sport.
He later joined the Tennessee Titans’ scouting department in 2019 and spent four years with the organization before departing in 2023. At the time of his arrest in 2024, Taylor had returned to college football and was working as a senior defensive analyst at Utah State.
Taylor’s arrest came roughly a year after Benning’s death. Authorities arrested him in Utah before he was extradited to Tennessee to face the charges.
Former Titans Scout Sentenced After Murdering Pregnant Girlfriend