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Blaise Taylor, 27, an ex-scout for the Tennessee Titans, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of Jade Benning, 25, and their unborn child, according to prosecutors.
The pregnant girlfriend of a former NFL scout said she noticed her "drink tasted funny" before she died from an alleged fatal poisoning in a Nashville hospital.
Blaise Taylor, 27, an ex-scout for the Tennessee Titans, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of chef Jade Benning, 25, and their unborn child, according to prosecutors, WSMV-TV reported.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Taylor was in a Nashville court for his bond hearing Thursday, where witnesses took the stand, including Jade's best friend, Nijaiha Jackson.
According to Jackson, Jade was five months pregnant when she called her the night she was hospitalized in late February 2023.
"When she called me, she never said hello. She never said my name. She never acknowledged that I was on the phone," Jackson told the courtroom, according to the station. "She sounded very wavy and she started to say, 'you did this to me. You put something in my drink. I knew my drink tasted funny.'"
Jackson also spoke to the nature of the couple's relationship, alleging Taylor broke up with Jade when he first found out she was pregnant with his child.
"He made it very clear that he did not want the baby," Jackson testified. "He did not want to be a part of the baby's life and was kind of ultimately telling her that she'd be a single mom."
They later reconciled.
While the defense argued there wasn't enough evidence to push the case forward, homicide detective Adam Reese alleged Jade's murder was premeditated after a medical examiner determined she died with a lethal amount of cocaine in her system.
"It's not a spur-of-a-moment type of thing to put drugs in someone's beverage," Reese said, WTVF-TV reported.
The night Jade was hospitalized, Taylor called 911 and alleged his girlfriend was suffering an allergic reaction. Their unborn baby died immediately, and Jade's death followed days later on March 6.
Investigators were never able to interview the mom-to-be.
Bond has not yet been set for Taylor, who is due back in court May 9.
