A former NFL scout and Utah State University football analyst has been arrested in connection to the poisoning deaths of his girlfriend and her unborn child.
Blaise A. Taylor, 27, was arrested Thursday evening in Logan. The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said a grand jury indicted Taylor on two first-degree murder charges, and he was taken into custody by deputy U.S. marshals with assistance from the Logan Police Department.
Police said Taylor’s girlfriend, Jade Benning, died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center on March 6, 2023 — her 25th birthday. She was hospitalized on Feb. 25, 2023, after Taylor called 911, saying she appeared to be having an allergic reaction.
Benning’s medical condition immediately became critical, according to police, and her unborn fetus died on Feb. 27, 2023. Police said they were not able to interview her before her death.
Detective Adam Reese led the investigation, which lasted months before Wednesday’s return of the murder indictment against Taylor. He is alleged to have poisoned Benning without her knowledge while visiting her Lebanon Pike apartment on the night of Feb. 25, 2023.
Taylor played college football at Arkansas State University and worked for one year at Duke as a graduate assistant coach. He later worked as a scout for the NFL’s Tennessee Titans, which play in Nashville, before moving to Utah to become a senior defensive analyst for Utah State on July 28, 2023.
His profile page had been removed from Utah State’s website as of Friday morning.