July 17, 2023 • 56 mins
On the morning of October 9, 2020, Jessica Brookes received an alarming phone call from her pregnant daughter’s husband in New Boston, Texas. Concern filled his voice as he explained that he couldn’t reach her and that their daughter had failed to appear at day-care. Jessica’s heart raced as she hastily arrived at her daughter’s home, only to be overcome with terror at the sight of blood staining the back door handle.
SPONSORS -
Healthycell: Thank you to Healthycell for sponsoring this episode! Healtycell’s REM Sleep gel to ensure a deep and REM sleep. They offer various other products designed with our wellbeing in mind. Get 20% off with code “MORBIDOLOGY” at: https://healthycell.com/morbidology
Babbel: Thank you to Babbel for sponsoring this episode! Learn a new language in as little as three weeks with Babbel. Get 55% off at: https://babbel.com/morbidology
SHOW NOTES - https://www.morbidology-the-podcast-113-reagan-simmons-hancock
PATREON - https://www.patreon.com/morbidology
Audio Credit:
Epidemic Sound
Evening of Chaos - Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Empty Reflections - ErikMMusic - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgq4SPKHlyI
A Mothers Sacrifice - OurMusicBox - https://ourmusicbox.com/
Dark Tranquility - Anno Domini Beats - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6mBav72Ak
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/morbidology--3527306/support.
SPONSORS -
Healthycell: Thank you to Healthycell for sponsoring this episode! Healtycell’s REM Sleep gel to ensure a deep and REM sleep. They offer various other products designed with our wellbeing in mind. Get 20% off with code “MORBIDOLOGY” at: https://healthycell.com/morbidology
Babbel: Thank you to Babbel for sponsoring this episode! Learn a new language in as little as three weeks with Babbel. Get 55% off at: https://babbel.com/morbidology
SHOW NOTES - https://www.morbidology-the-podcast-113-reagan-simmons-hancock
PATREON - https://www.patreon.com/morbidology
Audio Credit:
Epidemic Sound
Evening of Chaos - Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Empty Reflections - ErikMMusic - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgq4SPKHlyI
A Mothers Sacrifice - OurMusicBox - https://ourmusicbox.com/
Dark Tranquility - Anno Domini Beats - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6mBav72Ak
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/morbidology--3527306/support.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:47):
On the morning of the ninth ofOctober two thousand and twenty two, Jessica
Brooks received an alarming phone call fromher pregnant daughter's husband in New Boston,
Texas. Concern filled his voice ashe explained that he couldn't reach her and
that their daughter had failed to appearat daycare. Jessica's heart raced as she
hastily arrived at her daughter's home,only to be overcome with terror at the
(01:10):
site of blood standing the back doorhandle. New Boston is a small city
nestled in East Texas, with apopulation of less than five thousand, It
(01:32):
carries a rich history dating back toits early settlement by W. J.
Boston, an esteemed storekeeper. Locatedapproximately one hundred and sixty miles northeast of
Dallas, the town saw the emergenceof two more Boston's with the development of
the railroad. One of these wasNew Boston, positioned about four miles north
of the original settlement. It waswithin the confines of this close knit community
(01:57):
the twenty one year old Reagan Simmonshung Coock resided. She was the firstborn
to her parents and had a realstrong bond with her mother Jessica Brooks.
Reflecting on her daughter's character, Jessicafondly recalled Regan's unwavering love for those she
trusted and her genuine desire to assistanybody in need. Describing her vibrant personality,
(02:21):
Jessica emphasized Regan's unique blend of resilienceand tenderness, a spirit capable of
standing her ground yet radiating warmth.Regan was fiercely independent and a very strong
woman. Her friend Kelsey Conway saidof her, I can say without a
doubt her mother raised a good child. Despite any personal challenges she faced,
(02:46):
Regan maintained an optimistic outlook and possessedan uncanny ability to bring smiles to the
faces of others. In two andseventeen, Regan embraced motherhood at the age
of eighteen, when she welcomed herdaughter Kinley into the world. Jessica couldn't
contain her pride, expressing her admirationfor the remarkable mother that Reagan had become.
(03:08):
She had always known that Reagan's profounddesire to be a mother would manifest
into something extraordinary, and it certainlydid. Reagan despised the derogatory remarks often
aimed at young mother's and she wasdetermined to prove them wrong. Working tirelessly
to provide for herself and her youngdaughter, especially in the absence of Kinley's
(03:30):
biological father, Reagan found solace inthe presence of another man in her life,
Homer. Although not Kinley's biological father, Homer embraced her as if she
were his own flesh and blood,and he was actively pursuing full time custody.
Then, in early twenty nineteen,Homer proposed to Reagan and she radidly
(03:52):
accepted. Eager to celebrate their engagement, Reagan sought the assistance of her friend,
twenty seven year old Their Parker,who also happened to be a photographer.
Taylor frequently promoted her photography business onFacebook, offering maternity photo shoots that
included a complimentary session at the hospitalafter delivery. At the photo shoot,
(04:15):
the family post together with Kinley wearinga T shirt which read Mommy, will
you marry my daddy. Reagan postedthe photograph on her Facebook along with the
caption love my little family. Inthe comments, Taylor replied, my fay
family. Then both Reagan and Homerreplied to her, thanking her for taking
(04:36):
such great pictures. On the twentyfirst of September twenty nineteen, Reagan and
Homer exchanged foles, with Taylor capturingthe precious moments as their wearing photographer.
The blossoming family settled into her homeon Austin Street, working diligently to provide
for their loved ones. Reagan securedemployment at Flying Burger and Seafood in Texarkana,
(05:00):
while Homer transitioned from a role asa jail guard to finding work at
a landscaping company. Their joint effortsenabled Reagan to acquire a new source of
pride, an oppressive two thousand andtwenty Nissan Rouge suv. As their family
expanded, the need for a largervehicle became apparent. In early two thousand
(05:23):
and twenty, Reagan received news thatshe was expecting her second child. A
subsequent sonogram revealed that the baby wouldbe a girl. Coincidentally, Reagan's friend
Taylor Parker also shared the news ofher pregnancy, further deepening their bond As
they embarked on their parallel journeys ofmotherhood. Reagan and Homer had already chosen
(05:46):
a name for their soon to beborn daughter, Braxln. However, Reagan
had a hunch that Braxon might appearin the world ahead of schedule. Sharing
her concerns with her friend Abby Mathis, Regan expressed her readiness for Braxlan's arrival,
but also admitted her apprehension about apotential early delivery. She confided,
(06:10):
I'm so ready for brax to behere. I'm scarce she's fixing to come
faster. I feel like she's goingto be here before November. Deeply rooted
in her faith, Regan held onto her beliefs and worried that Braxlen might
be borne prematurely. One afternoon,seeking solace and support, she sought out
her friend Abby to join her inprayer, requesting that Braxlen remained safely nestled
(06:34):
inside her womb for as long aspossible. Their collective hope was that when
time came for Braxon's arrival, shewould be blessed with good health and vitality.
Meanwhile, Homer made a significant careerchange, accepting a new job at
a trucking center that offered him moreflexible working ours. This decision not only
(06:57):
provided financial stability for the family,but also allowed Homer to plan more active
role in their lives during the impendingarrival of brox Len. Life was good
for the family and they were eagerlyawaiting the arrival of brox Len. It
(07:34):
was shortly after nine to thirty amon the ninth of October two thousand and
twenty when Texas stay A Trooper LeeShavers pulled over a vehicle in De Kalb,
which isn't too far away from theOklahoma border, for speeding and driving
radically. Recointing the incident, hedescribed the events leading up to the stop
(07:56):
steering A black two thousand and nineToyota Corolla with its hazard lights on,
was going west at a high rateof speed. It almost struck a truck.
Then the car crossed over the doubleyellow lines, then swerved back on
the shoulder and almost hid a manon a bicycle. As the car came
to halt at the side of theroad, Trooper Shavers cautiously approached it.
(08:20):
He noticed that the female driver wasfrantically waving her hand out of the window.
It became apparent that she was engagedin a foam conversation with the emergency
service, who she had informed thatshe had just given birth. Inside the
car. Drawing closer, Trooper Shaversobserved a new born baby girl in the
driver's lap, seemingly still attached tothe mother by an umbilical cord that extended
(08:45):
from her navel. The woman's distressescalated as she cried out that her baby
was not breathing and that she neededimmediate transportation to Isabel Hospital. Blood was
visible on her face, for head, shirt, and shoes. Fortunately,
an off duty nurse named Amanda Perkeyhappened upon this scene and promptly halted her
(09:07):
vehicle to offer assistance. Amanda observedthat the baby appeared to be clammy and
cold, but clean. Recognizing thegravity of the situation, she initiated CPR
in the infant while awaiting the arrivalof paramedic Elton Crossland. Upon Elton's arrival,
(09:28):
he immediately noticed that the amniotic fluidpresent on the baby's skin was dry
and flaky, a clear indication thatthe birth did not occur as recently as
claimed by the woman. Additionally,the interior of the car lacked the tell
tale signs associated with a recent birth, such as blood or amniotic fluid.
(09:50):
Elton recounted the birth of a babyis not in need or clean process.
There was no blood or amniotic fluid. It was obvious to us that the
baby was an born in the car. Efforts were swiftly directed towards saving the
baby's life. Elton attended to theinfant, only to discover that she had
no pulse. He administered intervenous fluidsand continued CPR, even resorting to administering
(10:16):
epinephrine commonly known as adrenaline, inan effort to restore a pulse. The
woman and the baby were then rushedto McCurtain Memorial Hospital in nearby Adabel,
Oklahoma. Despite the dedicated efforts ofthe hospital staff, the baby couldn't be
revived and she was pronounced stead uponarrival. Tragically, she had suffered extensive
(10:43):
brain damage due to a lack ofoxygen. While the medical team attended to
the distressed woman, nurses including CharissaBrian commends their examination to ensure proper uterine
contraction and prevent excessive bleeding. However, during the assassin, Garrissa noticed that
the woman's uterus didn't feel like thatof a recent postpartum patient. She recalled,
(11:07):
we had a mom, we hada baby. Anna placenta. It
didn't make sense. Further adding tothe perplexity, the new mother showed no
signs of active bleeding. The nursescalled for an ultrasound, and when doctor
William Herron did a vaginal exam,he did not see a cervix, which
indicated that the woman likely had nouterus. When the ultrasound confirmed that the
(11:31):
woman had no uterus, doctor Heronordered a quantitative hCG test run on her
blood. The so called pregnancy hormonecan show up for up to six weeks
after delivery, but it came backas negative. While the woman was being
examined in the hospital, another incidentwas unfolding in New Boston. At his
(11:54):
workplace, Homer Simmons. Hancock wasbecoming increasingly concerned as his attempts to contact
Pagan, who was thirty five weekspregnant, were unfruitful. Concern escalated when
he discovered the kinley hadn't been droppedoff at daycare that morning. Fearing the
worst, Homer urgently contacted Reagan's mother, Jessica, and requested that she visit
(12:16):
their home to check on them.Jessica, accompanied by her husband Marcus Brooks,
who had been a father figure toReagan since her childhood. Promptly arrived
outside the family home, Jessica approachedthe back door and her attention was immediately
drawn to blood stains on the doorknob. Using her shirt as a makeshift barrier,
(12:39):
she cautiously opened the door, revealinga chilling scene. In the kitchen,
the floor bore bloody footprints, whilethe countertops, appliances, and surroundings
were splattered with blood. A trailof blood led from the kitchen into the
living room, prompting Jessica and Marcusto follow it. In the living room,
(13:01):
they found Regan lifeless and faced downon the floor, her body drenched
in blood that rendered her once blondehair a dark shade of red. Jessica,
overwhelmed by the gruesome scene, immediatelyrecognized the severity of the situation,
Recalling the tragic moment she laid herstay at out. I knew from all
(13:22):
of the blood that she was gone. Collapsing to her hands and fate,
she unleashed a deafening scream before dialingnine one one for assistance. Marcus,
who was grappling with a horrifying reality, worried about the whereabouts of Kinley and
feared that she had met the samefate as Regan. He called out Kinley's
(13:43):
name in desperation, but was metwith a chilling silence. However, after
a tense moment, he could heara muffled shout. Marcus dressed the voice
upstairs to Kinley's bedroom, where hediscovered her lying on the bed. Wrapping
her in a tactive blanket, hecarried her outside as they awaited the arrival
(14:03):
of paramedics and law enforcement. Paramedicswere quickly arrival on this scene, but
they didn't enter because it was reportedto not be a survivable incident and they
didn't want to disturb a potential crimescene. As it was discovered, Reagan
had been stabbed more than one hundredtimes and her skull had been crushed with
(14:24):
some kind of object. There wasalso a scalpel embedded in her neck which
had been slashed. As Detective charredFord took charge of the investigation, he
immediately learned that Reagan had only beenfive weeks away from reaching full term pregnancy.
Seeking clarity on the potential viability ofthe unborn baby, Braxoln, detactive
(14:48):
Ford requested the presence of a paramedicinside the residence, carefully ruling Reagan onto
her back. They made a grimdiscovery a large incisions spanning from hip to
hip, and BRAXLN was nowhere tobe found. Once it was discovered,
(15:26):
the brox then was missing, detectivefoward issue alerts across the area. One
of the paramedics on the scene,Jardinal, thought box of the incident earlier.
He recollected, I had heard oneof our units responded earlier to an
infant cardiac arrest. I kind offiled it away, but later it just
(15:46):
seemed very suspicious to me. Severalthings that don't happen that often were happening
in a very short amount of time. It was more than enough for me
to realize that these things were connected. So I called the Boston Police Department,
but someone else had already made theconnection and were on their way to
Itabel. Doctors at the hospital inItabel had determined that the woman with the
(16:11):
deceased newborn hadn't given birth and thatshe had no uterus. They had called
for detectives, who arrived and identifiedthe woman as twenty seven year old Taylor
Parker, Reagan's friend who had photographedher engagement and her wedding Taylor Parker was
(16:32):
from Simmons, Texas, and wasthe mother of two children, a daughter
born in two thousand and ten anda son born in two thousand and thirteen.
After the birth of her second child, she requested a sterilization, but
any kind of permanent sterilization had afailure risk, and in two thousand and
fourteen, Parker had an ectopic pregnancy. During the surgery for her ectopic pregnancy,
(16:55):
it was discovered that she had abenigned cyst and scoring from endometriosis.
Given the circumstances, the doctor suggesteda hysterectomy as the recommended course of action.
Seeking guidance, Parker's husband, Tommyway Cassy, turned to the doctor
and asked him what would he doif it were his loved one. The
(17:17):
doctor was confident in his recommendation andadvised him to proceed with the hysterectomy,
which he did. However, whenParker awoke from the besiegure, she was
upset upon learning that her uterus andone ovary had been removed without her consent.
She questioned why Tommy and the doctorhadn't waited for her to wake up
to alloy her to make that crucialdecision herself. As time progressed, Parker's
(17:41):
relationship with Tommy began to deteriorate,eventually leading to their separation. It wasn't
long until Parker settled down with anew man named Hunter Parker, However,
she chose not to disclose her previoushysteractomy with him. It wasn't until they
attended a concert in Little Rock,Arkansas, that a sudden illness struck Parker,
(18:03):
necessitating a trip to the hospital.It was there that Hunter discovered Parker's
partial hysterectomy through medical personnel. Inthe aftermath, Parker and Hunter engaged in
a conversation about starting a family,Expressing their desire to have a baby together,
Parker assured Hunter that they could hirea surrogate and utilize her inheritance to
(18:25):
cover the expenses. According to Parker, she was heir to the Blackburn Syrup
fortune. However, in reality,there was no money and Parker was no
heir. She had only ever workedoffice jobs at a staffing agency and a
pbgyn clinic. Confident in her plan, Parker informed Hunter that she had arranged
(18:48):
for a surrogate and that the necessaryfunds would be delivered However, an alleged
car accident resulted in the theft ofthe entrusted money by the EMTs responsible for
the incident. Hunter family began tocatch on that Parker wasn't exactly who she
portrayed herself to be. Distraught anddisillusioned by the turn of events, he
(19:12):
filed for divorce, painting Parker asa pathological liar. He claimed that whenever
he confronted her about her lies,she would respond with anger and further entangle
herself in a web of deceit.Hunter wasn't the only victim of Parker's fabrications.
McKenzie Bried, a close friend ofParker, found herself entangled in a
(19:34):
web of false stories. Parker confidedin McKenzie, claiming to have miscarried twins,
which left mackenzie devastated on behalf ofher friend. Additionally, Parker deceived
McKenzie by insisting that her hysterectomy wasnecessary due to stage four cancer, claiming
(19:55):
she told me she was eaten upwith cancer. During the period when Parker
he was still with Hunter and discussionsof using a surrogate rose, she approached
McKenzie, proposing that she served asher surrogate after giving birth to her own
daughter, Barker enticed McKenzie with thepromise of a one hundred thousand dollar payment,
which she alleged had been inherited fromher grandfather. After a relationship with
(20:21):
Hunter came to an end, Barkersettled down once more with a man named
Wade Griffin. Once more, Parkerwaved a web of lies from the beginning
of the relationship, telling Wade thatshe was a millionaire who couldn't get a
hold of her money because her motherwas plotting against her and preventing her from
accessing her fortune. Over time,these elaborate stories began to fall apart when
(20:44):
no money ever materialized. Barker sharedher fears with her friend Angela Pate that
Wade was going to end up leavingher. She recollected, she was obsessed
with Wade, and you could tellhe didn't feel the same way. She
was trying to buy him. Whenshe was with him, she would totally
glow and light up the whole room. He was everything to her. She
(21:07):
would do anything for him. Parker'ssales of wealth and familial assets weren't exclusive
to wait. She spun the sameyarn of inherited affluence to Angela, she
painted a picture of an opulent lineage, boasting vast landownership, lucrative gas and
oil leases, and substantial royalty earnings. Parker had told both Wade and Angela
(21:33):
that her mother was angry that themoney was going to her, and claimed
that she had even put out ahit on her with the Mexican mafia.
Despite catching Parker in numerous lies,Wade contemplated leaving her, but remained ensnared
by the fear that her life wastruly in danger. To lend credibility to
her fabrications, Barker often sought refugeat Angela's residence, insisting that undercover officers
(22:00):
were survealing her every move. Tofurther bolster her to sit, she purchased
multiple cell phones, crafted fake textmessages, reportably from law enforcement agencies involved
in the investigation. Barker even wentas far ascending messages from fictitious family members,
a lawyer, and an oil companyrepresentative. Angela recalled, you never
(22:25):
doubted her. She had answers foreverything. However, the convoluted Zaga to
get another turn when Parker claimed thather mother had been arrested and taken her
own life. While in jail,Barker confided in Angela that she chose not
to disclose the devastating news to hergrandparents, fearing that they would be unable
to bear the weight of such arevelation. Yet, in another twist,
(22:48):
Parker later declared that her mother hadresurfaced during a family Christmas gathering, leaving
everyone in utter disbelief. Angela recalled, she said, she walked in the
front door and everyone was shocked hermother was alive because everyone thought she was
dead. Sometime later, Angela receivedan email that was purported to be from
(23:10):
Parker's mother, but it read likea villain soliloquy troope. It read,
in part, let her feel inlife. Let her see what it's like
to have nothing. I've worked itout perfectly. I've arranged this all so
there are cracks. You see.Things won't add up, and she will
look even more like a liar.I still numbers to make her think people
(23:33):
were calling and doing things for herand it was never them. This will
not end well for her. Nomatter where she turns or what she says,
there will be a lie to fallback on her. See, I'm
going to send her in such deepof a depression that she will probably try
to kill herself like she's done before. But if not, then making way
it leave will do the trick.See, he will have no choice but
(23:56):
leave because nothing will be true.I've made his family turn on from pretending
to be people like a dealership thatdidn't get paid. Does it click now
to you? People? Just lether fall into her hole and knock get
out. The email, however,was simply from Parker. Parker steals only
continued to unfold, unveiling a patternof manipulation and deceit that entangled the lives
(24:21):
of those around her. Parker thenembarked on yet another intricate web of deception.
In December of twenty nineteen, shereached out to Rusty Lowe, a
farm and real estate broker at Centurytwenty one in Paris, Texas, and
said that she wanted to purchase Peakand Point, a sprawling fifteen hundred acre
(24:41):
Peakam plantation and ranch, putting forthan offer of three point five million dollars.
Parker asserted that she and Wade hadthe funds readily available from an inheritance
bestowed by her grandparents, displaying asense of urgency. Parker demonstrated her seriousness
and pressed for an immediate visit tothe property. Rusty reflected on their initial
(25:04):
encounter and stated, my first impressionwas that they were in a little bit
of a hurry. Everything had asense of urgency. Everything was now,
now now. Despite arriving in abattered vehicle that didn't the line with her
tales of opulence, Barker and Wadewere given a tour of the property and
they instantly fell in love with it. Rusty was seeking a two hundred thousand
(25:27):
dollars earnest money deposit for the purchase, and he soon encountered complications. Initially,
Parker claimed that the funds would besourced from her inheritance only, the
later assert that an oil lease wouldcover the costs. On the second of
January, she texted Rusty indicating adelay in the expected money transfer. Ten
(25:49):
days later, she claimed to haveswitched bang stud of frustrations with the previous
institution. Over the next several months, the situation unraveled as Parker failed to
produce a plausible explanation for the intendedpurchase. Desperately grasping at straws, she
introduced a mysterious figure called Uncle Butchto Rusty, urging him to trust that
(26:12):
she was indeed financially sound, withthe funds coming from her enigmatic relative.
At this juncture, Parker expressed interestin acquiring two additional properties total approximately twenty
million dollars. Through Rusty, shepresented him with emails and letters supposedly validating
her status as a multi millionaire,including correspondence from somebody named Shelley Lynx,
(26:37):
who was allegedly affiliated with Shell WesternGlobal and she served as Parker's representative.
Allegedly, these documents substantiated Parker's fastwealth, totaling a staggering three hundred and
seventy million dollars. How Everyone,Rusty attempted to establish contact with Shelley,
his efforts proved fruitless. That wasbecause Shelley, much like Uncle Butch and
(27:03):
every other single person named in correspondence, didn't exist. Parker had made every
single person up. Upon learning ofRusty's attempts to verify the authenticity of Shelley
and other individuals mentioned in the correspondence, Barker flew into a rage. In
a text message, she vehemently declared, after talking to my dad an attorney
(27:27):
who have brought land for more thanthis. It was stated to me that
the seller can ask, but youdon't have to ask them to verify what
we have in the bank, whereto myself, both weren't okay with him
calling for all that my uncle Butchis a multimillion dollar landowner and he says
he has been asked and been denied. Then, in March of two twenty,
(27:49):
Parker issued two checks made out tothe closing company, assuring Rusty of
her intent. However, on thevery same day she contacted him, asserting
the bank's preferred wire transfers over checks. Ultimately, in April of two and
twenty, Parker abruptly notified Rusty oftheir withdrawal from the poverty deal, Attributing
(28:12):
the entire scheme to an elaborate plotorchestrated by her mother. She alleged that
her mother had deceived her and thepromised inheritance was nothing but a fabrication.
Simultaneously, while this intricate red unfolded, another deception had been taking place.
(28:47):
In the early months of two thousandand twenty, Parker dropped a bombshettle on
Wade by revealing that she was pregnant. Wade was taken back by the news
and recollected. She told me,and I was kind of shocked because it
came at the same time when Ihad been telling her that we were not
financially in a good place. Itseemed like a trap to me. However,
(29:10):
the truth was far from what Wayhad had perceived. Parker wasn't pregnant,
nor could she conceive. She hadmeticulously constructed an elaborate hoax, complete
with a fake baby bump she hadpurchased online and a fabricated pregnancy journey that
she documented on Facebook. On thetwenty fifth of August, she shared a
(29:32):
photo on social media tenderly cradling herbelly while posing next to a horse.
Determined to make her deceit appeared genuine, Parker invested ours of research into faking
a pregnancy, convincingly scouring the Internetfor tips and even watching YouTube videos on
baby care. While a few selectindividuals in Parker's life were aware of her
(29:55):
hysterectomy, she had even lied aboutthat, concocting a false story for her
coworker at Express Employment, MICHAELA.Curtis. Barker claimed she needed the procedure
due to cancer discovered during the birthof a stillborn child, framing her purported
pregnancy as a miraculous medical anomaly thatwould be studied by doctors. One afternoon,
(30:21):
Parker arrived at work with an ultrasound, claiming it showed a jestiation of
six weeks. However, michaela examinedthe ultrasound and noticed that there were twin
fetuses that appeared to be eleven andtwelve weeks old. On the twenty third
of August two and twenty, Barkerconducted an online search for how to adopt
(30:41):
a newborn baby one podcast food PlayThanks to Babel, I know what that
means, do you? Lately I'vebeen immersing myself and learning French with Babel,
and you can too. In justthree weeks. Babel allows you to
start speaking a new language. Whilethe best way to learn a language is
(31:02):
through immersion living in a native speakingcountry, that option is infeasible for everyone.
Luckily, Babel provides the next vestalternative. In just three weeks,
you can learn a new language withBabel. As an avid traveler, Babel
has been incredibly useful for me,and this summer, you can also embark
on a language learning journey with them. Rather than spending a fortune on private
(31:25):
tutors or relying on dodgy translation apps, Babel offers quick, ten minute sessions
developed by more than one hundred andfifty language experts. The apps courses are
incredibly convenient and have greatly aided meduring my travels, whether it's ordering food
at restaurants, booking taxis, oreven engaging in conversations with the locals.
(31:47):
Here's a special, limited time offerfor morbitology listeners to get you started right
now. Get fifty five percent offyour Babel subscription, but only for my
listeners. At babel dot com slashmore biology get fifty five percent off abible
dot com slash morbidology that is spelledbabbel dot com slash Morbidology. Rules and
(32:13):
restrictions may apply. Following her pregnancyannouncement, her ex husband Tommy anonymously reached
out to Wade on September eleventh,warning him about Parker's inability to conceive.
Tommy didn't want Parker to discover hisinvolvement and pen the anonymous message. It's
(32:37):
funny how Tiler is pregnant, butevery hospital within a sixty mile radius is
watching for her because they're scared she'sgoing to come in and steal a baby,
because there's no way she's pregnant,and they all know that because they
all got the hospital records. Acouple of days later, Tommy contacted Wade
again, writing, I'm reaching outto you because I feel it's the ethical
(32:59):
thing to do. In twenty fifteen, Taylor got a hysterectomy. She isn't
pregnant, she can't get pregnant.She's a con artist and is lying to
keep you around. I'm sure youhaven't been to one doctor appointment with her
for whatever reason. Upon receiving thesecond message, we had shared a screenshot
(33:20):
of it with Parker. Astonishingly,within just fifteen minutes, Parker's online searches
took a dramatic turn. Her inquiriesshifted from how to adopt a newborn to
locations where pregnant women could be found. Simultaneously, she delved into videos depicting
cesarean sections, vaginal deliveries, andthe examination of placenta. Her plan had
(33:49):
changed from secretly adopting a newborn tostealing a newborn. As the purported dudate
drew closer, Parker informed weird ofa planned induction at Mount Pleasant Hospital.
However, on that morning, sheplaced a bomb threat call to the hospital.
Subsequently showing Wade a Facebook post regardingthe incident, she informed him that
(34:12):
they would need to reschedule the inductionwhere of the urgency to carry out her
to seait, Parker had settled onstealing her friend Reagan's baby, and on
the seventh of October she searched forher address. It's worth noting that amidst
Parker's apparent desire for a baby,she had outstanding child support debts amounting to
(34:36):
thousands of dollars owe to the fatherof her son, who she had given
birth to in two thousand and thirteen. As per the final divorce to Cree,
she was obligated to pay two hundredand twenty five per month in child
support starting from March of two thouand eighteen. However, Parker neglected to
make any payments towards her son's support, resulting in a humulated debt of seven
(35:00):
thousand, six hundred and eighty ninedollars including interests. Despite already having two
young children, Barker didn't have custodyof either of them. Then on the
eighth of October two and twenty,the day before the tragic deaths of Reagan
and BRAXLEYN, Parker made an appearanceat the family home. She informed Reagan
(35:22):
that she had a gift for herand the baby, but in reality she
had interior motives to assess the layoutof the home. The following day,
Parker had supposedly arranged to meet Wadeat Idabell Hospital for what she claimed would
be a plan induced labor and delivery. However, she deviated from her intended
(35:43):
course of action that morning. First, she watched a video depicting the physical
examination of a pre term infant atthirty five weeks, coincidentally matching Reagan's gestational
age. Subsequently, she viewed anothervideo showcasing an infant's development at the same
gestational stage. Parker then drove toReagan's home. She knocked on the front
(36:07):
door and gained entry. Unbeknownst toReagan, Parker had concealed a sharp scalpel
within her purse. Once inside thekitchen, she viciously attacked Reagan, slashing
and stabbing her predominantly in the face, head, and neck. In addition,
she used a four pont jar thatwas previously given to to Reagan on
(36:29):
her wedding day to bludgeon her.After forcibly extracting brax Len from Reagan's body
using the scalpel, Parker swiftly fledthe scene. At the hospital, Parker
(36:57):
was arrested and then charged with murderand kidnapping. She appeared in court for
an extradition hearing. She waved extraditionto Texas and was moved to the By
State Detention Center on the Texas Arkansasstate line in Texaarkana. She was dealed
without bond on capital murder, murder, and kidnapping charges. Meanwhile, tributes
(37:20):
for Reagan came flooding in. Ourmother, Jessica commented, our family is
our family, the horrid and soulof us, and a big piece of
that it's gone and we can neverget it back. Everybody says you can
have memories. We don't want tojust have memories. You want to have
your baby. And we never gotto meet Braxlen. We're in pieces.
(37:43):
I'd never wish this on anyone.Reagan's friend Abby said of her, she
was there for every single person.It didn't matter if you knew her a
day or if you knew her andr you could coin on Reagan for anything.
She was always cracking jokes and alwayshad something funny to say. She
made events fun, even if itwasn't a good time in someone's life.
(38:07):
The community offered their unwavering support toReagan's loved ones, with several fundraisers to
help Homer and Kinley, and evendonations collected via T shirt sales and car
washes. On the fifteenth of October, Parker appeared in court, where her
bomb was set at five million dollars. She was appointed lawyer Jeff Harrelson to
(38:28):
service her defense attorney. By thispoint, Parker had already confessed that the
newborn brax Lynn was indeed the childshe had taken from Reagan's womb. According
to Parker, on the morning ofthe ninth of October, Reagan had contacted
her out of concern for Parker's allegedheadaches and blackouts. She claimed that Reagan
(38:50):
invited her over so that she couldrest. Parker recounted her version of events,
steering I told her I would comeover and could lay down for a
few hours, and she said weneeded to talk. She claimed to have
experienced a blackout on the wed toReagan's residence and arrived at the scene.
Parker told detectives she grabbed me ina caring manner, but it was forceful.
(39:14):
That's when she scratched me, andit was like I was going in
and out and she kept hollering atme in a you need to wake the
fuck up way. According to Parker, a physical altercation between her and Reagan
ensued in the garage. Parker allegedthat Reagan forcefully closed the garage door during
(39:34):
the altercation. Barker explained, Ishoved her down in the garage, like
pushed her down. I didn't wantto be there because I was afraid that
something bad was going to happen.Parker claimed that Reagan struck her head on
the car and the garage floor duringthe altercation. However, Parker's account starkly
contradicted the evidence discovered the crime scene. She claimed that after the fight in
(40:00):
the garage, they went inside thehouse, where Reagan proceeded to style her
hair for work and voiced to satisfactionwith her relationship with Homer. The detective
challenged Parker's accounts, stating, yougot into a fight, made up,
she went and fixed her hair,and you murdered her? Is that what
happened? There was a three yearold girl in that house. The family
(40:23):
want answers. According to Parker's narrative, she informed Reagan that she needed to
leave to meet Wade at the hospital. Allegedly, when Parker went to retrieve
her bag, Regan grabbed at itand Parker accidentally scratched her while pushing her
onto a table. Parker claimed,I think she hit something because she was
(40:45):
bleeding. She then claimed that Reaganretrieved a knife from the kitchen and attempted
to cut her hand. Parker appearedto have gaps in her recollection of subsequent
events, but stated to the detectivesshe was laying in a pool of blood.
She rolled over and specifically said takeher because I feel like I'm dying.
(41:07):
She begged me to take her.She kept saying, get her out
of me, Get her out ofme. When asked whether she had arrived
at Regan's home with a scalpel,Barker paused for several moments before acknowledging that
she carried a scalpel in a medicalkit When questioned about the whereabouts of the
(41:27):
scalpel, Parker initially claimed to haveleft it on the floor. However,
the scalpel was discovered embedded in Regan'sneck, and when confronted with this fact,
Parker responded, I laid it onthe floor. I'm going with what
I remember. I don't remember stabbingher and I was the only person there.
(41:50):
Parker then suggested that Reagan must havefallen onto the scalpel herself. She
further claimed that at one point Reganhad inflicted wounds upon herself of an informed
Parker that she would be blamed forthem. However, this explanation appeared to
be a desperate attempt to shift blameaway from herself. The nature of the
altercation, which supposedly involved pushing,didn't align with the brutal reality of Reagan
(42:15):
being found dead on the floor,having endured over one hundred slashes and stab
wounds, including a sliced throat.Nevertheless, Parker vehemently denied any responsibility for
the horrific act, despite being theone in possession of the scalpel and standing
there holding Braxolin in her arms.On the tenth of December, a grand
(42:38):
jury indicted Parker for capital murder andkidnapping. That meant that if she were
convicted, she would be facing lifein prison without parole or capital punishment if
the state decided to pursuit. Justthe following month, District Attorney Jerry Rochelle
announced that they certainly were going tobe seeking the death penalty against Parker if
(42:59):
she were convicted. He cited thehorror and brutality of the attack, the
months of premeditation and planning, aswell as a lack of remorse by Parker.
The decision was made after careful considerationamong district attorney's staff and the surviving
family of Reagan and Braxlyn. Herdefense attorney Jeff Harrelson entered please of not
(43:22):
guilty on her behalf, and DistrictAttorney Kelly Crisp then announced that she was
expecting a grand jury to indict Parkerfor the murder of Braxlen as well as
Reagan. The grand jury ultimately did, meaning the Parker was facing capital murder
charges for both the murder of Reaganas well as Braxlyn. By September of
(43:44):
twenty twenty two, a jury consistingof six men and six women with two
alternatives was selected and the trial wasready to commence. During opening stamens.
Prosecutor Kelly Crisp stated, how dowe get here, to get this far?
She is an actress, an actressof the highest order. The lies
(44:05):
and fraud go on and on,the layers of fraud or staggering. You're
going to have to understand the fraudto understand what happened on October nine.
She then continued, this started monthsand months ahead of time until it passed
the point of no return and endedup in homicide. Prosecutor Crisp said that
the crime was unprecedented in the county, but said that overwhelming evidence would show
(44:30):
that Reagan had been killed by Parker. Prosecutor Crisp also told the jury that
the motivation to steal braxleyn wasn't becauseParker necessarily wanted a baby. Instead,
it was to keep her from losingher boyfriend. The prosecutor then detailed Parker's
premeditation, describing to the jury howshe conducted ours of research into pregnancy.
(44:54):
She highlighted the fact that all ofthe videos she watched and all of the
research can doted focused on pregnancies atthirty five weeks. Reagan was thirty five
weeks pregnant when she was killed.Prosecutor crisp stated, my opinion is Taylor
Parker faked her pregnancy. She plannedand carried out the murder of Reagan.
(45:17):
Defense attorney Jeff Harrelson challenged the prosecution'stheory. He said, you can see
somebody looked them up, but youdon't know why you have a theory.
He asked the jury for its fullattention and to weigh up all of the
evidence. He described the case asa complicated one, both factually and emotionally,
(45:38):
before staring the law is the lensand filter you must view these facts
through. Sometimes it's not black andwhite, but a shade of gray.
On the first day of the trial, the jury heard from doctor Chris Mason,
who detailed Parker's previous pregnancies as wellas her hysterectomy. Defense attorney Mac
(45:59):
Cobb the doctor whether a pregnancy aftera sterilization would be something a patient fun
traumatic or something that would cause depressionor an extreme reaction. Doctor Mason replied
that some patients would be upset,but said that since he wasn't a psychiatrist,
he couldn't comment any further. HunterParker, Parker's former husband, testified
(46:22):
next He testified about the hysterectomy andhis surprise when Parker claimed she was pregnant
with her new boyfriend. He wasasked whether he told anybody that she couldn't
bear children, and said he neverspoke to Parker's boyfriend, but spoke to
his brother about how Parker couldn't bepregnant. Parker's friend, Mackenzie Bride,
(46:42):
also testified about the plethora of liesher once friend had told her, telling
the jury she could make everything sobelievable. She played on my weakness.
She knew I had trouble conceiving andwould believe a miscarriage story. Mackenzie's sister
in law also told the jury thatshe knew Parker couldn't get pregnant since she
had asked Mackenzie to be her surrogate. She said that when Parker announced her
(47:07):
pregnancy in two and twenty, sheknew that she couldn't have been pregnant.
She said to the jury she wasa liar and was manipulating people to think
she was pregnant. Parker was knownas something of a fantasist whose lies built
up over time, and there wasa handful of people who knew that she
was faking her pregnancy. Her defenseattorneys tried to question why nobody contacted law
(47:30):
enforcement, but the prosecution rebuffed thisand said that it isn't illegal to fake
a pregnancy and that somebody cannot bearrested on suspicion that they might commit a
crime. After several witnesses testified,the prosecution made a point to remind the
jury the Parker was not insane andhad been deemed competent to stand trial.
(47:51):
Their comments had come as Parker's otherex husband, Tommy why Casey, took
to the stand and was asked bydefense attorney Harrelson whether Parker had ever had
a mental evaluation. Prosecutor Crisp stated, if Miss Parker was incompetent, we
wouldn't be in this courtroom. MissParker is not insane, or we would
not be having this jury trial.So as Miss Parker sits here today,
(48:15):
she's found competent. Hunter's mother,Diana Parker, testified a boy Parker's state
of mind when she was with herson. She said they always caught her
out in lies, and then she'dcover up those lies with even more lies.
However, it wasn't always like this, she said, there were days
where Parker could be ordinary. Theywould go shopping, cook males, and
(48:37):
hang out. Prosecutor Crisp asked,Taylor Parker could be normal when she wants
to be normal. If things aregoing her way, she can make the
decision to be normal. Deanna repliedyes. Dianna then turned to the jury
and stated, Taylor is not crazy. She is normal as me and you.
(49:00):
Once the trial continued, more witnessestestified about Parker's long khan, claiming
that she was to inherit millions.Rusty Lowe was one of them, and
he said he never believed that Wadewas in on the kahn. Jessica Reagan's
mother testified next, telling the juryin excruciating detail how she found her firstborn
(49:22):
daughter dead on the living room floor. Through tears, she said her red
hair was what stood out, andher hair was blonde. The paramedic who
tended to Parker at the side ofthe road then testified and said that they
planned on taking her to the hospitalin Titus County, but set the Parker
began screaming and said she needed togo to Itabel. That was part of
(49:45):
her plan. She had told Wadethat she was giving birth in Itabel hospital,
so she needed to be there.The testimony then shifted to Braxleyn.
She weighed seven points and was eighteenpoint seven inches long. Doctor Heron testified
that she would have been viable atthat age and size. There had been
(50:07):
a faint pulse on Braxleyn when Parkerwas pulled over, indicating that she certainly
had been alive. After the prosecutionrested, defense attorney Harrelson requested a motion
of acquittal based on a lack ofevidence to prove a kidnapping charge. He
claimed that Braxln was never alive.This was rebutted by prosecutor Chris, who
(50:28):
said that Braxlen had a heartbeat ata time of death. She stated Tilor
meant for her to be born.The defense then opted out of calling any
witnesses, and closing arguments were presented. The jury deliberated for just one hour
before returning with a verdict if onTiler Parker guilty of the murder of Reagan
(50:50):
and the kidnapping of brax Lyn.Following the verdict, Homer filed a civil
suit against both Parker and Wade.The suit claimed the Parker was negligent for
driving recklessly and erratically with baby braxLynn in Wade's car after cutting the baby
from Reagan Hancock's body on the morningof her murder, causing the infant's death.
(51:13):
The civil suit asserted that the baby'sinjuries were caused as a result of
Parker's negligent, careless, and recklessdisregard of her duty to exercise the degree
of care that a reasonably careful personwould use to avoid harm to others under
circumstances like those described herein that includedfailing to keep a proper lookout for the
(51:34):
baby's safety, failure to stay inthe proper lane, control her speed,
and control her vehicle. Suit alsoclaimed that Wade was negligent for allowing Parker
to use his vehicle because he knewher to be a liar and unstable.
The sentencing phase came on the twelfthof October, and prosecutors asked the jury
it a sentence Parker to death,while the defense sought leniency by arguing that
(51:58):
Parker, who was mentally ill.Victim impact statements were presented, including one
from Jessica, who directed it Parkertelling her my baby was alive, still
fighting for her babies when you toreher open and ripped her baby from her
stomach. She said that the pasttwo years had been a never ending nightmare
(52:20):
and said that the worst part waswatching Kinley grew up without a mother.
She then said that Reagan's death hadbeen harder on Kinley than anyone. She
said that if the little girl seesa pregnant woman, she will sometimes ask
if they're hurt or bleeding. Shealso said that Kinley doesn't like looking at
photographs of her mother in a redshirt because it looks like she's bleeding.
(52:45):
She stated, she's doing okay andWest taking very good care of her,
but we will never know what's goingthrough her little head. I know what
I saw, and I can't imagine. The jury then heard testimony from doctor
Timothy Proctor, a psychologist who evaluatedParker on the sixth and seventh of September.
(53:06):
He said that Parker had given himdifferent accounts of Reagan's murder than she
had done previously. He testified theParker told him that she had told Reagan
that she wasn't really pregnant, butthen became paranoid about what Reagan would do
with that information. He stated,she said Reagan had a painted look on
her face and was turning away likeshe didn't want to help her. After
(53:30):
all, she asked for help andReagan said no. She said Reagan looked
at her like an animal before youput it out of your misery. During
this confession, Parker said that Reaganhad not actually been the intended target,
and that she had targeted another pregnantwoman. He said he diagnosed her with
(53:51):
borderline personality disorder, but not amental illness or mental defect. It offends
witness. Doctor said Artha that Carneytestified about irregularities he found in Parker's brain
scans. Under questioning by Assistant DistrictAttorney Laurene Richards, he said he disagreed
with testimony about Parker having a severefrontal loop dysfunction. He testified that a
(54:16):
person with a problem this severe wouldbe in a skilled nursing facility with memory
issues. The jury deliberated for ninetyminutes before handing Tiller Parker a death sentence.
The lawsuit that Homer filed is stillcurrently ongoing. The Anticipation of welcoming
(54:38):
her baby girl, Braxln, intothe world filled Reagan Simmons Hancock with joy
and excitement. Little did she knowthat a sinister fate awaited her, unfolding
an horrifying act committed by someone sheconsidered a friend. In a chilling display
of foreshadowing, Reagan had expressed concern. It's about the possibility of her baby
(55:01):
being born prematurely. However, thepremature nature that she would ultimately face is
far more gruesome than anybody could haveever imagined. Well, Bessie's that is
(55:34):
it for this episode of Morbidology.It's always thank you so so much for
listening, and I'd like to saythe biggest thank you to my new supporters
of on Patreon, Christian on Lola. As I've mentioned a million times before,
Morbidology is a one woman podcast andresearch right both and edit the episodes
myself. So the support up onPadreon seriously, seriously, seriously go such
(55:58):
a long way and helps to seefred the costs that come with hosting a
podcast. If you'd like to checkit out, the link to Pedreon is
in the show notes, and youcan join for as little as one dollar
a month and there are absolutely noobligations. You can stay for as long
or as little as you like.Remember to check us out at more bitology
dot com for more information. Avoidthis episode on to read or troop crime
(56:19):
articles. Until next time, takecare of yourself, stay safe, and
have an amazing week.
On the morning of the ninth ofOctober two thousand and twenty two, Jessica
Brooks received an alarming phone call fromher pregnant daughter's husband in New Boston,
Texas. Concern filled his voice ashe explained that he couldn't reach her and
that their daughter had failed to appearat daycare. Jessica's heart raced as she
hastily arrived at her daughter's home,only to be overcome with terror at the
(01:10):
site of blood standing the back doorhandle. New Boston is a small city
nestled in East Texas, with apopulation of less than five thousand, It
(01:32):
carries a rich history dating back toits early settlement by W. J.
Boston, an esteemed storekeeper. Locatedapproximately one hundred and sixty miles northeast of
Dallas, the town saw the emergenceof two more Boston's with the development of
the railroad. One of these wasNew Boston, positioned about four miles north
of the original settlement. It waswithin the confines of this close knit community
(01:57):
the twenty one year old Reagan Simmonshung Coock resided. She was the firstborn
to her parents and had a realstrong bond with her mother Jessica Brooks.
Reflecting on her daughter's character, Jessicafondly recalled Regan's unwavering love for those she
trusted and her genuine desire to assistanybody in need. Describing her vibrant personality,
(02:21):
Jessica emphasized Regan's unique blend of resilienceand tenderness, a spirit capable of
standing her ground yet radiating warmth.Regan was fiercely independent and a very strong
woman. Her friend Kelsey Conway saidof her, I can say without a
doubt her mother raised a good child. Despite any personal challenges she faced,
(02:46):
Regan maintained an optimistic outlook and possessedan uncanny ability to bring smiles to the
faces of others. In two andseventeen, Regan embraced motherhood at the age
of eighteen, when she welcomed herdaughter Kinley into the world. Jessica couldn't
contain her pride, expressing her admirationfor the remarkable mother that Reagan had become.
(03:08):
She had always known that Reagan's profounddesire to be a mother would manifest
into something extraordinary, and it certainlydid. Reagan despised the derogatory remarks often
aimed at young mother's and she wasdetermined to prove them wrong. Working tirelessly
to provide for herself and her youngdaughter, especially in the absence of Kinley's
(03:30):
biological father, Reagan found solace inthe presence of another man in her life,
Homer. Although not Kinley's biological father, Homer embraced her as if she
were his own flesh and blood,and he was actively pursuing full time custody.
Then, in early twenty nineteen,Homer proposed to Reagan and she radidly
(03:52):
accepted. Eager to celebrate their engagement, Reagan sought the assistance of her friend,
twenty seven year old Their Parker,who also happened to be a photographer.
Taylor frequently promoted her photography business onFacebook, offering maternity photo shoots that
included a complimentary session at the hospitalafter delivery. At the photo shoot,
(04:15):
the family post together with Kinley wearinga T shirt which read Mommy, will
you marry my daddy. Reagan postedthe photograph on her Facebook along with the
caption love my little family. Inthe comments, Taylor replied, my fay
family. Then both Reagan and Homerreplied to her, thanking her for taking
(04:36):
such great pictures. On the twentyfirst of September twenty nineteen, Reagan and
Homer exchanged foles, with Taylor capturingthe precious moments as their wearing photographer.
The blossoming family settled into her homeon Austin Street, working diligently to provide
for their loved ones. Reagan securedemployment at Flying Burger and Seafood in Texarkana,
(05:00):
while Homer transitioned from a role asa jail guard to finding work at
a landscaping company. Their joint effortsenabled Reagan to acquire a new source of
pride, an oppressive two thousand andtwenty Nissan Rouge suv. As their family
expanded, the need for a largervehicle became apparent. In early two thousand
(05:23):
and twenty, Reagan received news thatshe was expecting her second child. A
subsequent sonogram revealed that the baby wouldbe a girl. Coincidentally, Reagan's friend
Taylor Parker also shared the news ofher pregnancy, further deepening their bond As
they embarked on their parallel journeys ofmotherhood. Reagan and Homer had already chosen
(05:46):
a name for their soon to beborn daughter, Braxln. However, Reagan
had a hunch that Braxon might appearin the world ahead of schedule. Sharing
her concerns with her friend Abby Mathis, Regan expressed her readiness for Braxlan's arrival,
but also admitted her apprehension about apotential early delivery. She confided,
(06:10):
I'm so ready for brax to behere. I'm scarce she's fixing to come
faster. I feel like she's goingto be here before November. Deeply rooted
in her faith, Regan held onto her beliefs and worried that Braxlen might
be borne prematurely. One afternoon,seeking solace and support, she sought out
her friend Abby to join her inprayer, requesting that Braxlen remained safely nestled
(06:34):
inside her womb for as long aspossible. Their collective hope was that when
time came for Braxon's arrival, shewould be blessed with good health and vitality.
Meanwhile, Homer made a significant careerchange, accepting a new job at
a trucking center that offered him moreflexible working ours. This decision not only
(06:57):
provided financial stability for the family,but also allowed Homer to plan more active
role in their lives during the impendingarrival of brox Len. Life was good
for the family and they were eagerlyawaiting the arrival of brox Len. It
(07:34):
was shortly after nine to thirty amon the ninth of October two thousand and
twenty when Texas stay A Trooper LeeShavers pulled over a vehicle in De Kalb,
which isn't too far away from theOklahoma border, for speeding and driving
radically. Recointing the incident, hedescribed the events leading up to the stop
(07:56):
steering A black two thousand and nineToyota Corolla with its hazard lights on,
was going west at a high rateof speed. It almost struck a truck.
Then the car crossed over the doubleyellow lines, then swerved back on
the shoulder and almost hid a manon a bicycle. As the car came
to halt at the side of theroad, Trooper Shavers cautiously approached it.
(08:20):
He noticed that the female driver wasfrantically waving her hand out of the window.
It became apparent that she was engagedin a foam conversation with the emergency
service, who she had informed thatshe had just given birth. Inside the
car. Drawing closer, Trooper Shaversobserved a new born baby girl in the
driver's lap, seemingly still attached tothe mother by an umbilical cord that extended
(08:45):
from her navel. The woman's distressescalated as she cried out that her baby
was not breathing and that she neededimmediate transportation to Isabel Hospital. Blood was
visible on her face, for head, shirt, and shoes. Fortunately,
an off duty nurse named Amanda Perkeyhappened upon this scene and promptly halted her
(09:07):
vehicle to offer assistance. Amanda observedthat the baby appeared to be clammy and
cold, but clean. Recognizing thegravity of the situation, she initiated CPR
in the infant while awaiting the arrivalof paramedic Elton Crossland. Upon Elton's arrival,
(09:28):
he immediately noticed that the amniotic fluidpresent on the baby's skin was dry
and flaky, a clear indication thatthe birth did not occur as recently as
claimed by the woman. Additionally,the interior of the car lacked the tell
tale signs associated with a recent birth, such as blood or amniotic fluid.
(09:50):
Elton recounted the birth of a babyis not in need or clean process.
There was no blood or amniotic fluid. It was obvious to us that the
baby was an born in the car. Efforts were swiftly directed towards saving the
baby's life. Elton attended to theinfant, only to discover that she had
no pulse. He administered intervenous fluidsand continued CPR, even resorting to administering
(10:16):
epinephrine commonly known as adrenaline, inan effort to restore a pulse. The
woman and the baby were then rushedto McCurtain Memorial Hospital in nearby Adabel,
Oklahoma. Despite the dedicated efforts ofthe hospital staff, the baby couldn't be
revived and she was pronounced stead uponarrival. Tragically, she had suffered extensive
(10:43):
brain damage due to a lack ofoxygen. While the medical team attended to
the distressed woman, nurses including CharissaBrian commends their examination to ensure proper uterine
contraction and prevent excessive bleeding. However, during the assassin, Garrissa noticed that
the woman's uterus didn't feel like thatof a recent postpartum patient. She recalled,
(11:07):
we had a mom, we hada baby. Anna placenta. It
didn't make sense. Further adding tothe perplexity, the new mother showed no
signs of active bleeding. The nursescalled for an ultrasound, and when doctor
William Herron did a vaginal exam,he did not see a cervix, which
indicated that the woman likely had nouterus. When the ultrasound confirmed that the
(11:31):
woman had no uterus, doctor Heronordered a quantitative hCG test run on her
blood. The so called pregnancy hormonecan show up for up to six weeks
after delivery, but it came backas negative. While the woman was being
examined in the hospital, another incidentwas unfolding in New Boston. At his
(11:54):
workplace, Homer Simmons. Hancock wasbecoming increasingly concerned as his attempts to contact
Pagan, who was thirty five weekspregnant, were unfruitful. Concern escalated when
he discovered the kinley hadn't been droppedoff at daycare that morning. Fearing the
worst, Homer urgently contacted Reagan's mother, Jessica, and requested that she visit
(12:16):
their home to check on them.Jessica, accompanied by her husband Marcus Brooks,
who had been a father figure toReagan since her childhood. Promptly arrived
outside the family home, Jessica approachedthe back door and her attention was immediately
drawn to blood stains on the doorknob. Using her shirt as a makeshift barrier,
(12:39):
she cautiously opened the door, revealinga chilling scene. In the kitchen,
the floor bore bloody footprints, whilethe countertops, appliances, and surroundings
were splattered with blood. A trailof blood led from the kitchen into the
living room, prompting Jessica and Marcusto follow it. In the living room,
(13:01):
they found Regan lifeless and faced downon the floor, her body drenched
in blood that rendered her once blondehair a dark shade of red. Jessica,
overwhelmed by the gruesome scene, immediatelyrecognized the severity of the situation,
Recalling the tragic moment she laid herstay at out. I knew from all
(13:22):
of the blood that she was gone. Collapsing to her hands and fate,
she unleashed a deafening scream before dialingnine one one for assistance. Marcus,
who was grappling with a horrifying reality, worried about the whereabouts of Kinley and
feared that she had met the samefate as Regan. He called out Kinley's
(13:43):
name in desperation, but was metwith a chilling silence. However, after
a tense moment, he could heara muffled shout. Marcus dressed the voice
upstairs to Kinley's bedroom, where hediscovered her lying on the bed. Wrapping
her in a tactive blanket, hecarried her outside as they awaited the arrival
(14:03):
of paramedics and law enforcement. Paramedicswere quickly arrival on this scene, but
they didn't enter because it was reportedto not be a survivable incident and they
didn't want to disturb a potential crimescene. As it was discovered, Reagan
had been stabbed more than one hundredtimes and her skull had been crushed with
(14:24):
some kind of object. There wasalso a scalpel embedded in her neck which
had been slashed. As Detective charredFord took charge of the investigation, he
immediately learned that Reagan had only beenfive weeks away from reaching full term pregnancy.
Seeking clarity on the potential viability ofthe unborn baby, Braxoln, detactive
(14:48):
Ford requested the presence of a paramedicinside the residence, carefully ruling Reagan onto
her back. They made a grimdiscovery a large incisions spanning from hip to
hip, and BRAXLN was nowhere tobe found. Once it was discovered,
(15:26):
the brox then was missing, detectivefoward issue alerts across the area. One
of the paramedics on the scene,Jardinal, thought box of the incident earlier.
He recollected, I had heard oneof our units responded earlier to an
infant cardiac arrest. I kind offiled it away, but later it just
(15:46):
seemed very suspicious to me. Severalthings that don't happen that often were happening
in a very short amount of time. It was more than enough for me
to realize that these things were connected. So I called the Boston Police Department,
but someone else had already made theconnection and were on their way to
Itabel. Doctors at the hospital inItabel had determined that the woman with the
(16:11):
deceased newborn hadn't given birth and thatshe had no uterus. They had called
for detectives, who arrived and identifiedthe woman as twenty seven year old Taylor
Parker, Reagan's friend who had photographedher engagement and her wedding Taylor Parker was
(16:32):
from Simmons, Texas, and wasthe mother of two children, a daughter
born in two thousand and ten anda son born in two thousand and thirteen.
After the birth of her second child, she requested a sterilization, but
any kind of permanent sterilization had afailure risk, and in two thousand and
fourteen, Parker had an ectopic pregnancy. During the surgery for her ectopic pregnancy,
(16:55):
it was discovered that she had abenigned cyst and scoring from endometriosis.
Given the circumstances, the doctor suggesteda hysterectomy as the recommended course of action.
Seeking guidance, Parker's husband, Tommyway Cassy, turned to the doctor
and asked him what would he doif it were his loved one. The
(17:17):
doctor was confident in his recommendation andadvised him to proceed with the hysterectomy,
which he did. However, whenParker awoke from the besiegure, she was
upset upon learning that her uterus andone ovary had been removed without her consent.
She questioned why Tommy and the doctorhadn't waited for her to wake up
to alloy her to make that crucialdecision herself. As time progressed, Parker's
(17:41):
relationship with Tommy began to deteriorate,eventually leading to their separation. It wasn't
long until Parker settled down with anew man named Hunter Parker, However,
she chose not to disclose her previoushysteractomy with him. It wasn't until they
attended a concert in Little Rock,Arkansas, that a sudden illness struck Parker,
(18:03):
necessitating a trip to the hospital.It was there that Hunter discovered Parker's
partial hysterectomy through medical personnel. Inthe aftermath, Parker and Hunter engaged in
a conversation about starting a family,Expressing their desire to have a baby together,
Parker assured Hunter that they could hirea surrogate and utilize her inheritance to
(18:25):
cover the expenses. According to Parker, she was heir to the Blackburn Syrup
fortune. However, in reality,there was no money and Parker was no
heir. She had only ever workedoffice jobs at a staffing agency and a
pbgyn clinic. Confident in her plan, Parker informed Hunter that she had arranged
(18:48):
for a surrogate and that the necessaryfunds would be delivered However, an alleged
car accident resulted in the theft ofthe entrusted money by the EMTs responsible for
the incident. Hunter family began tocatch on that Parker wasn't exactly who she
portrayed herself to be. Distraught anddisillusioned by the turn of events, he
(19:12):
filed for divorce, painting Parker asa pathological liar. He claimed that whenever
he confronted her about her lies,she would respond with anger and further entangle
herself in a web of deceit.Hunter wasn't the only victim of Parker's fabrications.
McKenzie Bried, a close friend ofParker, found herself entangled in a
(19:34):
web of false stories. Parker confidedin McKenzie, claiming to have miscarried twins,
which left mackenzie devastated on behalf ofher friend. Additionally, Parker deceived
McKenzie by insisting that her hysterectomy wasnecessary due to stage four cancer, claiming
(19:55):
she told me she was eaten upwith cancer. During the period when Parker
he was still with Hunter and discussionsof using a surrogate rose, she approached
McKenzie, proposing that she served asher surrogate after giving birth to her own
daughter, Barker enticed McKenzie with thepromise of a one hundred thousand dollar payment,
which she alleged had been inherited fromher grandfather. After a relationship with
(20:21):
Hunter came to an end, Barkersettled down once more with a man named
Wade Griffin. Once more, Parkerwaved a web of lies from the beginning
of the relationship, telling Wade thatshe was a millionaire who couldn't get a
hold of her money because her motherwas plotting against her and preventing her from
accessing her fortune. Over time,these elaborate stories began to fall apart when
(20:44):
no money ever materialized. Barker sharedher fears with her friend Angela Pate that
Wade was going to end up leavingher. She recollected, she was obsessed
with Wade, and you could tellhe didn't feel the same way. She
was trying to buy him. Whenshe was with him, she would totally
glow and light up the whole room. He was everything to her. She
(21:07):
would do anything for him. Parker'ssales of wealth and familial assets weren't exclusive
to wait. She spun the sameyarn of inherited affluence to Angela, she
painted a picture of an opulent lineage, boasting vast landownership, lucrative gas and
oil leases, and substantial royalty earnings. Parker had told both Wade and Angela
(21:33):
that her mother was angry that themoney was going to her, and claimed
that she had even put out ahit on her with the Mexican mafia.
Despite catching Parker in numerous lies,Wade contemplated leaving her, but remained ensnared
by the fear that her life wastruly in danger. To lend credibility to
her fabrications, Barker often sought refugeat Angela's residence, insisting that undercover officers
(22:00):
were survealing her every move. Tofurther bolster her to sit, she purchased
multiple cell phones, crafted fake textmessages, reportably from law enforcement agencies involved
in the investigation. Barker even wentas far ascending messages from fictitious family members,
a lawyer, and an oil companyrepresentative. Angela recalled, you never
(22:25):
doubted her. She had answers foreverything. However, the convoluted Zaga to
get another turn when Parker claimed thather mother had been arrested and taken her
own life. While in jail,Barker confided in Angela that she chose not
to disclose the devastating news to hergrandparents, fearing that they would be unable
to bear the weight of such arevelation. Yet, in another twist,
(22:48):
Parker later declared that her mother hadresurfaced during a family Christmas gathering, leaving
everyone in utter disbelief. Angela recalled, she said, she walked in the
front door and everyone was shocked hermother was alive because everyone thought she was
dead. Sometime later, Angela receivedan email that was purported to be from
(23:10):
Parker's mother, but it read likea villain soliloquy troope. It read,
in part, let her feel inlife. Let her see what it's like
to have nothing. I've worked itout perfectly. I've arranged this all so
there are cracks. You see.Things won't add up, and she will
look even more like a liar.I still numbers to make her think people
(23:33):
were calling and doing things for herand it was never them. This will
not end well for her. Nomatter where she turns or what she says,
there will be a lie to fallback on her. See, I'm
going to send her in such deepof a depression that she will probably try
to kill herself like she's done before. But if not, then making way
it leave will do the trick.See, he will have no choice but
(23:56):
leave because nothing will be true.I've made his family turn on from pretending
to be people like a dealership thatdidn't get paid. Does it click now
to you? People? Just lether fall into her hole and knock get
out. The email, however,was simply from Parker. Parker steals only
continued to unfold, unveiling a patternof manipulation and deceit that entangled the lives
(24:21):
of those around her. Parker thenembarked on yet another intricate web of deception.
In December of twenty nineteen, shereached out to Rusty Lowe, a
farm and real estate broker at Centurytwenty one in Paris, Texas, and
said that she wanted to purchase Peakand Point, a sprawling fifteen hundred acre
(24:41):
Peakam plantation and ranch, putting forthan offer of three point five million dollars.
Parker asserted that she and Wade hadthe funds readily available from an inheritance
bestowed by her grandparents, displaying asense of urgency. Parker demonstrated her seriousness
and pressed for an immediate visit tothe property. Rusty reflected on their initial
(25:04):
encounter and stated, my first impressionwas that they were in a little bit
of a hurry. Everything had asense of urgency. Everything was now,
now now. Despite arriving in abattered vehicle that didn't the line with her
tales of opulence, Barker and Wadewere given a tour of the property and
they instantly fell in love with it. Rusty was seeking a two hundred thousand
(25:27):
dollars earnest money deposit for the purchase, and he soon encountered complications. Initially,
Parker claimed that the funds would besourced from her inheritance only, the
later assert that an oil lease wouldcover the costs. On the second of
January, she texted Rusty indicating adelay in the expected money transfer. Ten
(25:49):
days later, she claimed to haveswitched bang stud of frustrations with the previous
institution. Over the next several months, the situation unraveled as Parker failed to
produce a plausible explanation for the intendedpurchase. Desperately grasping at straws, she
introduced a mysterious figure called Uncle Butchto Rusty, urging him to trust that
(26:12):
she was indeed financially sound, withthe funds coming from her enigmatic relative.
At this juncture, Parker expressed interestin acquiring two additional properties total approximately twenty
million dollars. Through Rusty, shepresented him with emails and letters supposedly validating
her status as a multi millionaire,including correspondence from somebody named Shelley Lynx,
(26:37):
who was allegedly affiliated with Shell WesternGlobal and she served as Parker's representative.
Allegedly, these documents substantiated Parker's fastwealth, totaling a staggering three hundred and
seventy million dollars. How Everyone,Rusty attempted to establish contact with Shelley,
his efforts proved fruitless. That wasbecause Shelley, much like Uncle Butch and
(27:03):
every other single person named in correspondence, didn't exist. Parker had made every
single person up. Upon learning ofRusty's attempts to verify the authenticity of Shelley
and other individuals mentioned in the correspondence, Barker flew into a rage. In
a text message, she vehemently declared, after talking to my dad an attorney
(27:27):
who have brought land for more thanthis. It was stated to me that
the seller can ask, but youdon't have to ask them to verify what
we have in the bank, whereto myself, both weren't okay with him
calling for all that my uncle Butchis a multimillion dollar landowner and he says
he has been asked and been denied. Then, in March of two twenty,
(27:49):
Parker issued two checks made out tothe closing company, assuring Rusty of
her intent. However, on thevery same day she contacted him, asserting
the bank's preferred wire transfers over checks. Ultimately, in April of two and
twenty, Parker abruptly notified Rusty oftheir withdrawal from the poverty deal, Attributing
(28:12):
the entire scheme to an elaborate plotorchestrated by her mother. She alleged that
her mother had deceived her and thepromised inheritance was nothing but a fabrication.
Simultaneously, while this intricate red unfolded, another deception had been taking place.
(28:47):
In the early months of two thousandand twenty, Parker dropped a bombshettle on
Wade by revealing that she was pregnant. Wade was taken back by the news
and recollected. She told me,and I was kind of shocked because it
came at the same time when Ihad been telling her that we were not
financially in a good place. Itseemed like a trap to me. However,
(29:10):
the truth was far from what Wayhad had perceived. Parker wasn't pregnant,
nor could she conceive. She hadmeticulously constructed an elaborate hoax, complete
with a fake baby bump she hadpurchased online and a fabricated pregnancy journey that
she documented on Facebook. On thetwenty fifth of August, she shared a
(29:32):
photo on social media tenderly cradling herbelly while posing next to a horse.
Determined to make her deceit appeared genuine, Parker invested ours of research into faking
a pregnancy, convincingly scouring the Internetfor tips and even watching YouTube videos on
baby care. While a few selectindividuals in Parker's life were aware of her
(29:55):
hysterectomy, she had even lied aboutthat, concocting a false story for her
coworker at Express Employment, MICHAELA.Curtis. Barker claimed she needed the procedure
due to cancer discovered during the birthof a stillborn child, framing her purported
pregnancy as a miraculous medical anomaly thatwould be studied by doctors. One afternoon,
(30:21):
Parker arrived at work with an ultrasound, claiming it showed a jestiation of
six weeks. However, michaela examinedthe ultrasound and noticed that there were twin
fetuses that appeared to be eleven andtwelve weeks old. On the twenty third
of August two and twenty, Barkerconducted an online search for how to adopt
(30:41):
a newborn baby one podcast food PlayThanks to Babel, I know what that
means, do you? Lately I'vebeen immersing myself and learning French with Babel,
and you can too. In justthree weeks. Babel allows you to
start speaking a new language. Whilethe best way to learn a language is
(31:02):
through immersion living in a native speakingcountry, that option is infeasible for everyone.
Luckily, Babel provides the next vestalternative. In just three weeks,
you can learn a new language withBabel. As an avid traveler, Babel
has been incredibly useful for me,and this summer, you can also embark
on a language learning journey with them. Rather than spending a fortune on private
(31:25):
tutors or relying on dodgy translation apps, Babel offers quick, ten minute sessions
developed by more than one hundred andfifty language experts. The apps courses are
incredibly convenient and have greatly aided meduring my travels, whether it's ordering food
at restaurants, booking taxis, oreven engaging in conversations with the locals.
(31:47):
Here's a special, limited time offerfor morbitology listeners to get you started right
now. Get fifty five percent offyour Babel subscription, but only for my
listeners. At babel dot com slashmore biology get fifty five percent off abible
dot com slash morbidology that is spelledbabbel dot com slash Morbidology. Rules and
(32:13):
restrictions may apply. Following her pregnancyannouncement, her ex husband Tommy anonymously reached
out to Wade on September eleventh,warning him about Parker's inability to conceive.
Tommy didn't want Parker to discover hisinvolvement and pen the anonymous message. It's
(32:37):
funny how Tiler is pregnant, butevery hospital within a sixty mile radius is
watching for her because they're scared she'sgoing to come in and steal a baby,
because there's no way she's pregnant,and they all know that because they
all got the hospital records. Acouple of days later, Tommy contacted Wade
again, writing, I'm reaching outto you because I feel it's the ethical
(32:59):
thing to do. In twenty fifteen, Taylor got a hysterectomy. She isn't
pregnant, she can't get pregnant.She's a con artist and is lying to
keep you around. I'm sure youhaven't been to one doctor appointment with her
for whatever reason. Upon receiving thesecond message, we had shared a screenshot
(33:20):
of it with Parker. Astonishingly,within just fifteen minutes, Parker's online searches
took a dramatic turn. Her inquiriesshifted from how to adopt a newborn to
locations where pregnant women could be found. Simultaneously, she delved into videos depicting
cesarean sections, vaginal deliveries, andthe examination of placenta. Her plan had
(33:49):
changed from secretly adopting a newborn tostealing a newborn. As the purported dudate
drew closer, Parker informed weird ofa planned induction at Mount Pleasant Hospital.
However, on that morning, sheplaced a bomb threat call to the hospital.
Subsequently showing Wade a Facebook post regardingthe incident, she informed him that
(34:12):
they would need to reschedule the inductionwhere of the urgency to carry out her
to seait, Parker had settled onstealing her friend Reagan's baby, and on
the seventh of October she searched forher address. It's worth noting that amidst
Parker's apparent desire for a baby,she had outstanding child support debts amounting to
(34:36):
thousands of dollars owe to the fatherof her son, who she had given
birth to in two thousand and thirteen. As per the final divorce to Cree,
she was obligated to pay two hundredand twenty five per month in child
support starting from March of two thouand eighteen. However, Parker neglected to
make any payments towards her son's support, resulting in a humulated debt of seven
(35:00):
thousand, six hundred and eighty ninedollars including interests. Despite already having two
young children, Barker didn't have custodyof either of them. Then on the
eighth of October two and twenty,the day before the tragic deaths of Reagan
and BRAXLEYN, Parker made an appearanceat the family home. She informed Reagan
(35:22):
that she had a gift for herand the baby, but in reality she
had interior motives to assess the layoutof the home. The following day,
Parker had supposedly arranged to meet Wadeat Idabell Hospital for what she claimed would
be a plan induced labor and delivery. However, she deviated from her intended
(35:43):
course of action that morning. First, she watched a video depicting the physical
examination of a pre term infant atthirty five weeks, coincidentally matching Reagan's gestational
age. Subsequently, she viewed anothervideo showcasing an infant's development at the same
gestational stage. Parker then drove toReagan's home. She knocked on the front
(36:07):
door and gained entry. Unbeknownst toReagan, Parker had concealed a sharp scalpel
within her purse. Once inside thekitchen, she viciously attacked Reagan, slashing
and stabbing her predominantly in the face, head, and neck. In addition,
she used a four pont jar thatwas previously given to to Reagan on
(36:29):
her wedding day to bludgeon her.After forcibly extracting brax Len from Reagan's body
using the scalpel, Parker swiftly fledthe scene. At the hospital, Parker
(36:57):
was arrested and then charged with murderand kidnapping. She appeared in court for
an extradition hearing. She waved extraditionto Texas and was moved to the By
State Detention Center on the Texas Arkansasstate line in Texaarkana. She was dealed
without bond on capital murder, murder, and kidnapping charges. Meanwhile, tributes
(37:20):
for Reagan came flooding in. Ourmother, Jessica commented, our family is
our family, the horrid and soulof us, and a big piece of
that it's gone and we can neverget it back. Everybody says you can
have memories. We don't want tojust have memories. You want to have
your baby. And we never gotto meet Braxlen. We're in pieces.
(37:43):
I'd never wish this on anyone.Reagan's friend Abby said of her, she
was there for every single person.It didn't matter if you knew her a
day or if you knew her andr you could coin on Reagan for anything.
She was always cracking jokes and alwayshad something funny to say. She
made events fun, even if itwasn't a good time in someone's life.
(38:07):
The community offered their unwavering support toReagan's loved ones, with several fundraisers to
help Homer and Kinley, and evendonations collected via T shirt sales and car
washes. On the fifteenth of October, Parker appeared in court, where her
bomb was set at five million dollars. She was appointed lawyer Jeff Harrelson to
(38:28):
service her defense attorney. By thispoint, Parker had already confessed that the
newborn brax Lynn was indeed the childshe had taken from Reagan's womb. According
to Parker, on the morning ofthe ninth of October, Reagan had contacted
her out of concern for Parker's allegedheadaches and blackouts. She claimed that Reagan
(38:50):
invited her over so that she couldrest. Parker recounted her version of events,
steering I told her I would comeover and could lay down for a
few hours, and she said weneeded to talk. She claimed to have
experienced a blackout on the wed toReagan's residence and arrived at the scene.
Parker told detectives she grabbed me ina caring manner, but it was forceful.
(39:14):
That's when she scratched me, andit was like I was going in
and out and she kept hollering atme in a you need to wake the
fuck up way. According to Parker, a physical altercation between her and Reagan
ensued in the garage. Parker allegedthat Reagan forcefully closed the garage door during
(39:34):
the altercation. Barker explained, Ishoved her down in the garage, like
pushed her down. I didn't wantto be there because I was afraid that
something bad was going to happen.Parker claimed that Reagan struck her head on
the car and the garage floor duringthe altercation. However, Parker's account starkly
contradicted the evidence discovered the crime scene. She claimed that after the fight in
(40:00):
the garage, they went inside thehouse, where Reagan proceeded to style her
hair for work and voiced to satisfactionwith her relationship with Homer. The detective
challenged Parker's accounts, stating, yougot into a fight, made up,
she went and fixed her hair,and you murdered her? Is that what
happened? There was a three yearold girl in that house. The family
(40:23):
want answers. According to Parker's narrative, she informed Reagan that she needed to
leave to meet Wade at the hospital. Allegedly, when Parker went to retrieve
her bag, Regan grabbed at itand Parker accidentally scratched her while pushing her
onto a table. Parker claimed,I think she hit something because she was
(40:45):
bleeding. She then claimed that Reaganretrieved a knife from the kitchen and attempted
to cut her hand. Parker appearedto have gaps in her recollection of subsequent
events, but stated to the detectivesshe was laying in a pool of blood.
She rolled over and specifically said takeher because I feel like I'm dying.
(41:07):
She begged me to take her.She kept saying, get her out
of me, Get her out ofme. When asked whether she had arrived
at Regan's home with a scalpel,Barker paused for several moments before acknowledging that
she carried a scalpel in a medicalkit When questioned about the whereabouts of the
(41:27):
scalpel, Parker initially claimed to haveleft it on the floor. However,
the scalpel was discovered embedded in Regan'sneck, and when confronted with this fact,
Parker responded, I laid it onthe floor. I'm going with what
I remember. I don't remember stabbingher and I was the only person there.
(41:50):
Parker then suggested that Reagan must havefallen onto the scalpel herself. She
further claimed that at one point Reganhad inflicted wounds upon herself of an informed
Parker that she would be blamed forthem. However, this explanation appeared to
be a desperate attempt to shift blameaway from herself. The nature of the
altercation, which supposedly involved pushing,didn't align with the brutal reality of Reagan
(42:15):
being found dead on the floor,having endured over one hundred slashes and stab
wounds, including a sliced throat.Nevertheless, Parker vehemently denied any responsibility for
the horrific act, despite being theone in possession of the scalpel and standing
there holding Braxolin in her arms.On the tenth of December, a grand
(42:38):
jury indicted Parker for capital murder andkidnapping. That meant that if she were
convicted, she would be facing lifein prison without parole or capital punishment if
the state decided to pursuit. Justthe following month, District Attorney Jerry Rochelle
announced that they certainly were going tobe seeking the death penalty against Parker if
(42:59):
she were convicted. He cited thehorror and brutality of the attack, the
months of premeditation and planning, aswell as a lack of remorse by Parker.
The decision was made after careful considerationamong district attorney's staff and the surviving
family of Reagan and Braxlyn. Herdefense attorney Jeff Harrelson entered please of not
(43:22):
guilty on her behalf, and DistrictAttorney Kelly Crisp then announced that she was
expecting a grand jury to indict Parkerfor the murder of Braxlen as well as
Reagan. The grand jury ultimately did, meaning the Parker was facing capital murder
charges for both the murder of Reaganas well as Braxlyn. By September of
(43:44):
twenty twenty two, a jury consistingof six men and six women with two
alternatives was selected and the trial wasready to commence. During opening stamens.
Prosecutor Kelly Crisp stated, how dowe get here, to get this far?
She is an actress, an actressof the highest order. The lies
(44:05):
and fraud go on and on,the layers of fraud or staggering. You're
going to have to understand the fraudto understand what happened on October nine.
She then continued, this started monthsand months ahead of time until it passed
the point of no return and endedup in homicide. Prosecutor Crisp said that
the crime was unprecedented in the county, but said that overwhelming evidence would show
(44:30):
that Reagan had been killed by Parker. Prosecutor Crisp also told the jury that
the motivation to steal braxleyn wasn't becauseParker necessarily wanted a baby. Instead,
it was to keep her from losingher boyfriend. The prosecutor then detailed Parker's
premeditation, describing to the jury howshe conducted ours of research into pregnancy.
(44:54):
She highlighted the fact that all ofthe videos she watched and all of the
research can doted focused on pregnancies atthirty five weeks. Reagan was thirty five
weeks pregnant when she was killed.Prosecutor crisp stated, my opinion is Taylor
Parker faked her pregnancy. She plannedand carried out the murder of Reagan.
(45:17):
Defense attorney Jeff Harrelson challenged the prosecution'stheory. He said, you can see
somebody looked them up, but youdon't know why you have a theory.
He asked the jury for its fullattention and to weigh up all of the
evidence. He described the case asa complicated one, both factually and emotionally,
(45:38):
before staring the law is the lensand filter you must view these facts
through. Sometimes it's not black andwhite, but a shade of gray.
On the first day of the trial, the jury heard from doctor Chris Mason,
who detailed Parker's previous pregnancies as wellas her hysterectomy. Defense attorney Mac
(45:59):
Cobb the doctor whether a pregnancy aftera sterilization would be something a patient fun
traumatic or something that would cause depressionor an extreme reaction. Doctor Mason replied
that some patients would be upset,but said that since he wasn't a psychiatrist,
he couldn't comment any further. HunterParker, Parker's former husband, testified
(46:22):
next He testified about the hysterectomy andhis surprise when Parker claimed she was pregnant
with her new boyfriend. He wasasked whether he told anybody that she couldn't
bear children, and said he neverspoke to Parker's boyfriend, but spoke to
his brother about how Parker couldn't bepregnant. Parker's friend, Mackenzie Bride,
(46:42):
also testified about the plethora of liesher once friend had told her, telling
the jury she could make everything sobelievable. She played on my weakness.
She knew I had trouble conceiving andwould believe a miscarriage story. Mackenzie's sister
in law also told the jury thatshe knew Parker couldn't get pregnant since she
had asked Mackenzie to be her surrogate. She said that when Parker announced her
(47:07):
pregnancy in two and twenty, sheknew that she couldn't have been pregnant.
She said to the jury she wasa liar and was manipulating people to think
she was pregnant. Parker was knownas something of a fantasist whose lies built
up over time, and there wasa handful of people who knew that she
was faking her pregnancy. Her defenseattorneys tried to question why nobody contacted law
(47:30):
enforcement, but the prosecution rebuffed thisand said that it isn't illegal to fake
a pregnancy and that somebody cannot bearrested on suspicion that they might commit a
crime. After several witnesses testified,the prosecution made a point to remind the
jury the Parker was not insane andhad been deemed competent to stand trial.
(47:51):
Their comments had come as Parker's otherex husband, Tommy why Casey, took
to the stand and was asked bydefense attorney Harrelson whether Parker had ever had
a mental evaluation. Prosecutor Crisp stated, if Miss Parker was incompetent, we
wouldn't be in this courtroom. MissParker is not insane, or we would
not be having this jury trial.So as Miss Parker sits here today,
(48:15):
she's found competent. Hunter's mother,Diana Parker, testified a boy Parker's state
of mind when she was with herson. She said they always caught her
out in lies, and then she'dcover up those lies with even more lies.
However, it wasn't always like this, she said, there were days
where Parker could be ordinary. Theywould go shopping, cook males, and
(48:37):
hang out. Prosecutor Crisp asked,Taylor Parker could be normal when she wants
to be normal. If things aregoing her way, she can make the
decision to be normal. Deanna repliedyes. Dianna then turned to the jury
and stated, Taylor is not crazy. She is normal as me and you.
(49:00):
Once the trial continued, more witnessestestified about Parker's long khan, claiming
that she was to inherit millions.Rusty Lowe was one of them, and
he said he never believed that Wadewas in on the kahn. Jessica Reagan's
mother testified next, telling the juryin excruciating detail how she found her firstborn
(49:22):
daughter dead on the living room floor. Through tears, she said her red
hair was what stood out, andher hair was blonde. The paramedic who
tended to Parker at the side ofthe road then testified and said that they
planned on taking her to the hospitalin Titus County, but set the Parker
began screaming and said she needed togo to Itabel. That was part of
(49:45):
her plan. She had told Wadethat she was giving birth in Itabel hospital,
so she needed to be there.The testimony then shifted to Braxleyn.
She weighed seven points and was eighteenpoint seven inches long. Doctor Heron testified
that she would have been viable atthat age and size. There had been
(50:07):
a faint pulse on Braxleyn when Parkerwas pulled over, indicating that she certainly
had been alive. After the prosecutionrested, defense attorney Harrelson requested a motion
of acquittal based on a lack ofevidence to prove a kidnapping charge. He
claimed that Braxln was never alive.This was rebutted by prosecutor Chris, who
(50:28):
said that Braxlen had a heartbeat ata time of death. She stated Tilor
meant for her to be born.The defense then opted out of calling any
witnesses, and closing arguments were presented. The jury deliberated for just one hour
before returning with a verdict if onTiler Parker guilty of the murder of Reagan
(50:50):
and the kidnapping of brax Lyn.Following the verdict, Homer filed a civil
suit against both Parker and Wade.The suit claimed the Parker was negligent for
driving recklessly and erratically with baby braxLynn in Wade's car after cutting the baby
from Reagan Hancock's body on the morningof her murder, causing the infant's death.
(51:13):
The civil suit asserted that the baby'sinjuries were caused as a result of
Parker's negligent, careless, and recklessdisregard of her duty to exercise the degree
of care that a reasonably careful personwould use to avoid harm to others under
circumstances like those described herein that includedfailing to keep a proper lookout for the
(51:34):
baby's safety, failure to stay inthe proper lane, control her speed,
and control her vehicle. Suit alsoclaimed that Wade was negligent for allowing Parker
to use his vehicle because he knewher to be a liar and unstable.
The sentencing phase came on the twelfthof October, and prosecutors asked the jury
it a sentence Parker to death,while the defense sought leniency by arguing that
(51:58):
Parker, who was mentally ill.Victim impact statements were presented, including one
from Jessica, who directed it Parkertelling her my baby was alive, still
fighting for her babies when you toreher open and ripped her baby from her
stomach. She said that the pasttwo years had been a never ending nightmare
(52:20):
and said that the worst part waswatching Kinley grew up without a mother.
She then said that Reagan's death hadbeen harder on Kinley than anyone. She
said that if the little girl seesa pregnant woman, she will sometimes ask
if they're hurt or bleeding. Shealso said that Kinley doesn't like looking at
photographs of her mother in a redshirt because it looks like she's bleeding.
(52:45):
She stated, she's doing okay andWest taking very good care of her,
but we will never know what's goingthrough her little head. I know what
I saw, and I can't imagine. The jury then heard testimony from doctor
Timothy Proctor, a psychologist who evaluatedParker on the sixth and seventh of September.
(53:06):
He said that Parker had given himdifferent accounts of Reagan's murder than she
had done previously. He testified theParker told him that she had told Reagan
that she wasn't really pregnant, butthen became paranoid about what Reagan would do
with that information. He stated,she said Reagan had a painted look on
her face and was turning away likeshe didn't want to help her. After
(53:30):
all, she asked for help andReagan said no. She said Reagan looked
at her like an animal before youput it out of your misery. During
this confession, Parker said that Reaganhad not actually been the intended target,
and that she had targeted another pregnantwoman. He said he diagnosed her with
(53:51):
borderline personality disorder, but not amental illness or mental defect. It offends
witness. Doctor said Artha that Carneytestified about irregularities he found in Parker's brain
scans. Under questioning by Assistant DistrictAttorney Laurene Richards, he said he disagreed
with testimony about Parker having a severefrontal loop dysfunction. He testified that a
(54:16):
person with a problem this severe wouldbe in a skilled nursing facility with memory
issues. The jury deliberated for ninetyminutes before handing Tiller Parker a death sentence.
The lawsuit that Homer filed is stillcurrently ongoing. The Anticipation of welcoming
(54:38):
her baby girl, Braxln, intothe world filled Reagan Simmons Hancock with joy
and excitement. Little did she knowthat a sinister fate awaited her, unfolding
an horrifying act committed by someone sheconsidered a friend. In a chilling display
of foreshadowing, Reagan had expressed concern. It's about the possibility of her baby
(55:01):
being born prematurely. However, thepremature nature that she would ultimately face is
far more gruesome than anybody could haveever imagined. Well, Bessie's that is
(55:34):
it for this episode of Morbidology.It's always thank you so so much for
listening, and I'd like to saythe biggest thank you to my new supporters
of on Patreon, Christian on Lola. As I've mentioned a million times before,
Morbidology is a one woman podcast andresearch right both and edit the episodes
myself. So the support up onPadreon seriously, seriously, seriously go such
(55:58):
a long way and helps to seefred the costs that come with hosting a
podcast. If you'd like to checkit out, the link to Pedreon is
in the show notes, and youcan join for as little as one dollar
a month and there are absolutely noobligations. You can stay for as long
or as little as you like.Remember to check us out at more bitology
dot com for more information. Avoidthis episode on to read or troop crime
(56:19):
articles. Until next time, takecare of yourself, stay safe, and
have an amazing week.
Popular Podcasts
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.
The Charlie Kirk Show
Charlie is America's hardest working grassroots activist who has your inside scoop on the biggest news of the day and what's really going on behind the headlines. The founder of Turning Point USA and one of social media's most engaged personalities, Charlie is on the front lines of America’s culture war, mobilizing hundreds of thousands of students on over 3,500 college and high school campuses across the country, bringing you your daily dose of clarity in a sea of chaos all from his signature no-holds-barred, unapologetically conservative, freedom-loving point of view. You can also watch Charlie Kirk on Salem News Channel