Taylor Parker brutally killed Reagan Simmons-Hancock in 2020 after building a friendship based on the lie that they were sharing their pregnancies. The baby taken from Simmons-Hancock's womb could not be saved.
The Pregnancy Lie and Fabricated Life
Despite knowing she could not have children due to a hysterectomy years earlier, Parker told those around her she was pregnant. She wore a silicone belly, shared fake ultrasound images, held a gender reveal party, and documented her supposedly growing baby bump on social media.
Jessica Dimmock, director of the new Netflix documentary "Maternal Instinct," stated that Parker resorted to this lie to save her relationship. Dimmock said, "On the surface it looks that way, but underneath there's something much deeper, broken, and dangerous."
The Brutal Murder
On the morning of October 9, 2020, Reagan Simmons-Hancock, who was in the final weeks of her pregnancy, was found dead in her home. According to the Associated Press, Simmons-Hancock suffered more than 100 stab wounds and her head was crushed with a hammer. The baby, removed from her abdomen using a scalpel, was named Braxlynn Sage.
The victim's 3-year-old daughter, who was home at the time, was not physically harmed.
Capture and Trial
The same day, Parker was pulled over by police for erratic driving and told emergency responders she had given birth on the side of the road and the baby was not breathing. An examination at the hospital revealed Parker had not recently given birth and that she had no uterus.
DNA tests proved the baby belonged to Simmons-Hancock, and Parker was arrested. In a 2022 trial, Parker was found guilty of murder and kidnapping the child and sentenced to death.
Defense attorneys argued the baby was never alive and sought dismissal of the kidnapping charge. However, prosecutors stated that several healthcare workers testified the baby had a heartbeat at birth.
Taylor Parker is now 33 and awaiting execution on Texas' death row.
