“YOU DID THIS TO THE BABY!” Pregnant Woman’s Shocking Final Words Accuse Boyfriend Blaise Taylor of Spiking Her Drink – Now He’s on Trial for Double Murder!

In February 2023, Jade Benning was hospitalized in critical condition after her boyfriend, Blaise Taylor, called police to report that she was “having an allergic reaction.” Both Benning and her 5-month unborn child died days later.

What appeared to be a tragic loss at first turned into a criminal case when Taylor, a former college football player for Arkansas State, was charged with two counts of first-degree murder in their deaths. The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department (MNPD) said in a statement that he allegedly “poisoned Benning without her knowledge.”

Taylor pleaded not guilty, and his trial began in June 2026. Prosecutors have argued that he spiked Benning’s drink with cocaine during a date night because he didn’t want her to have the child, while his defense claimed that her death was the result of an overdose caused by her own drug use, WZTV and WKRN reported.

If convicted, he could face up to life in prison.

Here’s everything to know about Jade Benning’s death and Blaise Taylor’s murder trial, including the accusation she made against him on the night she died.

In February 2023, Benning was hospitalized for an alleged allergic reaction

According to the MNPD, Taylor called 911 around 9:38 p.m. on Feb. 25, 2023, to request medical assistance for his girlfriend, who he said was having an allergic reaction.

“I don’t know. I think she’s having an allergic reaction,” Taylor said in the recording to the 911 dispatcher that was played during his trial, per WZTV and WKRN. “We were making cookies and painting, and she says she wasn’t feeling good. Now I’m going back to the room to check on her.”

When emergency responders arrived, they found Benning without a pulse, face down across a bed. She was rushed from her Nashville apartment to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where her condition quickly deteriorated, and she was unable to speak with investigators.

During later testimony, Dr. Michael Olushoga, who treated the expectant mother, said that “all clinical signs” indicated she had already died by the time she arrived at the hospital.

She and her unborn child died days later

A Vanderbilt physician testified that when Benning was admitted, she had severe brain damage and her unborn child had a low heart rate.

Two days after she was hospitalized, Benning’s unborn child — a girl whom the family planned to name Ivy — died, per WZTV and WKRN.

Benning died on her 25th birthday on March 6, 2023, at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

Medical examiners testified during Taylor’s trial that her cause of death was a fatal combination of a large amount of cocaine dissolved in alcohol.

Taylor was arrested and charged with their deaths in March 2024

MNPD announced in a statement that they had arrested Taylor in Utah on March 14, 2024, after a Nashville grand jury indicted him on two counts of first-degree murder “for the poisoning deaths” of Benning and her unborn child.

Taylor’s alleged motive came to light during his June 2026 trial, in which prosecutors claimed that he spiked her pink lemonade with a mixture of cocaine dissolved in alcohol because he didn’t want her to give birth to her child, which was believed to be his, per WZTV.

Police said the ex-college football player had moved out of Tennessee after the two deaths.

His lawyers argued that Benning died of her own drug use

Defense attorneys claimed that Benning’s death was not the result of intentional poisoning, but an overdose caused by her own drug use.

WZTV reported that Taylor’s attorneys questioned witnesses about her recreational use of marijuana and alcohol, highlighting a testimony that suggested she didn’t directly reject an offer for a marijuana gummy while pregnant.

The defense also claimed that the crime scene may have been compromised after Benning’s friends retrieved belongings from her apartment.

Stephanie Franklin, the mother of a close friend of Benning, took multiple photos of the apartment while wearing gloves and removed a bed comforter that Benning had vomited on.

“We were angry. Didn’t seem like anybody was doing anything,” she testified, adding that she “would never” attempt to interfere with the investigation, per WKRN. “No answers. Why do you have a child on life support? No answers.”

A witness claimed Benning accused Taylor of spiking her drink

During Taylor’s bond hearing in April 2024, Benning’s best friend claimed that she overheard her talking to her boyfriend just before she became violently ill. Nijaiha Jackson recounted that phone call, believed to be the expectant mother’s last words, during Taylor’s 2026 trial.

“She was saying, ‘My drink tasted funny, I can’t even walk straight, you did this to do something to the baby,’ ” Jackson said at the hearing, per News Channel 5.

Prosecutors argued during the hearing that the murders were premeditated, as a cup that was in front of Benning in a photo was missing when police searched the scene.

“It appeared there had been some cleanup done,” state and homicide detective Adam Reese explained during the hearing. “It’s not a spur-of-a-moment type of thing to put drugs in someone’s beverage.”

Taylor’s trial is ongoing. If convicted, he could face up to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He remains free on a $2.5 million bond.