Woman Found Guilty for Fatally Stabbing Pregnant Woman & Trying to Steal Her Baby

A jury in Texas has found a woman guilty of capital murder for killing an expectant mother in an attempt to steal her unborn baby.

Taylor Rene Parker, 29, was convicted of stabbing Reagan Simmons Hancock, 21, in Oct. 2020 and taking the victim’s baby from her womb, the Bowie County District Attorney’s office said on Monday.

The baby girl also did not survive the attack and was announced deceased along with her mother.

During the recent three-week trial, Parker’s lawyer, Jeff Harrelson, argued that the kidnapping charge should be dismissed, a move that would reduce Parker’s capital murder charge to murder.

In his closing argument, Harrelson told the 12-person jury, made up of six women and six men, “That’s why in opening statements we spent so much time on definitions. You can’t kidnap a person who has not been born alive.”

Still, prosecutors noted that medical experts confirmed the baby girl had a heartbeat, with Assistant District Attorney Kelly Crisp adding of Parker, “We have methodically laid out what she did, why she did it, all the moving parts, and all the collateral damage. The best evidence the state of Texas has that baby was born alive…”

Assistant District Attorney Lauren Richards said, “In the past two weeks, the evidence has never been more clear. She’s a liar, a manipulator, and now she’s gonna be held accountable for it.”

Simmons Hancock was approximately seven-and-a-half months pregnant when the child was taken from her womb.

Parker was speeding and pulled over by a Texas State Trooper in De Kalb shortly after the attack. She told the officer she had given birth by the side of the road, and that the baby was not breathing.

Parker and the baby were both rushed by ambulance to McCurtain Memorial Hospital in Idabel, Oklahoma, but the hospital staff was suspicious of Parker when she refused to be checked out by doctors.

The baby was declared dead at the hospital.

During the trial, Crisp said Parker lied about being pregnant for nearly 10 months to keep her boyfriend around. She faked ultrasounds, had a gender-reveal party and even posted about her fake pregnancy on social media.

After the attack, Parker left Simmons Hancock’s 3-year-old daughter alone with her dying mom.

Parker is expected to be sentenced on October 12. Prosecutors are asking for the death penalty.