Blaise Taylor Didn’t Poison Pregnant Girlfriend: Defense

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: Good morning. Standing here at the end of the trial and trying to put everything together is always for me very difficult because the burden is always very heavy. And your jobs are never -- it's just never easy. Never easy. But we're here. And one of the things that I want to talk to you about is the words that you guys gave us. Not just me, but the state as well. Not just Mr. Taylor, but Jade's family as well. No matter what happens as a result of this, it is still a tragedy. It is still a very awful incident that occurred. And there is only one question that we have to answer. Is whether or not Blaise Taylor, in your minds and in your opinions, is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. There is only one question or one thing that we will ask of you, that I will ask of you, that Blaise will ask of you, that his family will ask of you. And that is to keep your word. Keep the word that each one of you gave us. And that is that you could follow the law. You cannot -- we cannot -- build a justice system based on emotion, based on sympathy, based on just the mere fact that a tragedy occurred. Every time a loved one leaves this earth, it is sad and it is a tragedy. But that in and of itself cannot drive our justice system. What we cannot do is say, because someone lost their life, that we don't have to follow the law. That we don't have to hold the state to its burden. Because otherwise this system collapsed. We could talk about the pain that a mother feels when she loses a child. We can talk about a beautiful young lady and her daughter who is no longer with us. And if you're not human, you won't hurt. But if you are human, you will hurt. But that should not play in to your decision. In order for this thing that we call the Constitution to work, you have to set that aside. And that's the word that you gave us. That's the oath you swore to take. There is a burden here. And I bring it up because that's why we're here. I'm not bringing this up as a facade. I'm not doing that. I'm just reminding you what the law is. I'm just reminding you what governs this trial. Every defendant has a Sixth Amendment right to a fair and impartial trial. Every citizen charged with a crime should get a fair and impartial jury trial. And at the end of the day, when those jurors make a decision as to whether or not he is innocent and or guilty, they must use that burden of proof. And they must hold the state to it. What you can't do is say, well, then what happened to him? If he didn't do it, then what happened to him? Well, I don't know. Well, I don't either. Well, then he must be guilty. Because he didn't prove to us that it wasn't him. But remember, we don't have to do that. That's not the burden. They must prove to you what happened to Ms. Benny. They must prove to you beyond a reasonable doubt what happened that night. Not us. Not the defense. So then you ask yourself, well, what happened? If he didn't do it, what happened? You're going to say that a million times because that's just a natural reaction to what we're dealing with. But remember, as you are going along that journey, deliberating back there, going through the evidence. Remember, they must prove it to you. You cannot ever place that burden on blanks. You cannot. The minute you do that, that Sixth Amendment right to a fair trial collapses. And once that collapses, the system collapses. And once the system collapses, you have people wrongfully convicted and sitting in jail for a very long time, trying to prove their innocence. And that's not the way it was designed to work. That is not the way our forefathers meant for it to work. So with that being said, let's talk about it. Remember, as we came in here on June 22nd, 2026, we dealt with an official finding of undetermined. The manner of death in this case. By the state's own medical examiner. She had the option to choose homicide. She knew the facts. You heard from Dr. Carney way before you did. And she couldn't figure out what the manner of death was. She landed on undetermined. And she's still on undetermined. Now you're tasked with whether or not you can take it over the hump and move it to murder beyond a reasonable doubt. I want to talk to you guys first about the facts of this case. And what you've learned since you've been here. What I don't want you to do as we take this journey is come into this environment and say to yourselves, I want to live in La La Land. I want everything to be perfect. [00:08:53] Speaker ?: Life isn't perfect. [00:08:56] Speaker 1: And the older you get, the more you learn that. The older you get, the harder it gets. Trust me when I tell you that. And those of us over the age of 50 can tell you about things that we experience in life that are good, that are ugly. Things that we've learned along the way. How we've treated people in the past, how we interacted with people in the past, how we respond to people in the past, and how we respond to people now. You learn along the way. But what life isn't is a perfect cookie-cutter La La Land. That's not life. So let's talk about Blaze and Jade. They met on Hinge. They dated for a little while in terms of, I shouldn't say date, they interacted for a little while. But never really met up. And remember, these are young people. They had casual relationships, not just with each other, but with other people too. And it wasn't just Blaze that dated other people, they both dated other people. They were adults, they were consenting, nobody did anything wrong because everybody agreed. That you can date someone else, and you can date someone else. We may not want to live our lives that way, but that's the way they chose to live their life. So when you hear the facts about Blaze texting someone else, that was nothing against Jade because she was okay with it. So don't let the state make you think that because he was dating someone else, and he texted that other person, that that was something nefarious or wrong. No, it wasn't. No, it wasn't. He didn't have to hide that. She knew that. Najee had told you that. She said it to the police officers. She said they weren't dating like that. They weren't exclusive. So no matter how many times the state tells you that Blaze was texting another woman, there's nothing nefarious about that. And that has nothing to do with whether or not he committed murder. So don't go down that road track. Stay focused on what you're here to do. And I want to be clear when I tell you that when we're talking about facts, if you remember, in Vor Dyer, I had a slider. It had facts and blame. And I asked each one of you, would you be okay if sometimes facts were ugly, but I needed to share that with you so that you could have all the facts to come to a decision? It would be unfair to blaze if you didn't have all the facts. So don't think that those facts that we're putting before you were there to put blame or shame on anybody because it's not. But it would be unfair for you not to have all the facts so that you can come to a conclusion. One that makes sense based on the evidence in this case. Because that's how you get to a solid verdict is because of evidence, not of sympathy, and not of being angry because I want to give you facts. That's all I want to do. So when they're dating in this casual relationship, they knew each other for less than 90 days. That's a fact. They met up in August and before the end of the month, they were having sex. That's a fact. And they were having sex without a condom. That is a fact. And we know that because otherwise she wouldn't have been pregnant and thought it was blazes. So when she finds out that she's pregnant, she and her best friend are trying to make a decision about who the father was. Because at that time, she wasn't sure. And we talked about that with Nigel. And to me, I think that that is a crucial fact for you to consider. Because if she wasn't sure Blaze was the father of the baby, neither was he. So you would then have to believe that he would kill her and that child, not even knowing if it's his or not. That's a fact. [00:14:39] Speaker ?: That's a fact. [00:14:43] Speaker 1: And so she tells him she's pregnant. And he's not happy about it. She is. And that's great. There's nothing wrong with that. But Blaze, on the other hand, with only knowing her for 90 days, maybe he's not happy about that. I guarantee you he is not the first human being that in his 20s had an unexpected pregnancy pop up and he's not happy. I guarantee you he is not the only human being who's ever felt that way. And they want you to believe that that's just a horrible fact that would give him motive to kill her and the baby. Most folks in their 20 years who is in their 20s who get someone pregnant that they don't know within 90 days I'm willing to bet at least 50/50 are not happy. That's real life stuff. That's not a nefarious fact. That's just real life stuff. And that's what I'm going to talk to you today about. It's real life stuff. Because if you remember, you heard from Nigel, they were talking about possibly going to Indiana for an abortion. Remember, Nigel was saying it was two weeks, eight weeks, you better make a decision and make it quick if that's what you want to do. And she said, yeah, I do. I need to make that decision. You heard that testimony. Eventually, she landed on having the baby, which she has every right to do. But somehow, it's okay for her to consider abortion. But it wasn't okay for Blaze to consider it. That's not fair. Don't let them turn that into a nefarious fact that will automatically get you over to murder. They both considered it. It was just her window was shorter than his. And it would be unfair for you to punish him if you don't punish her. So at some point, they talk about it. Apparently, Blaze was still in the position that he was in, even though she had changed her mind. And she, with the strength that obviously she has, or had, said, look, I'm not changing my mind. You've made your decision. If you don't want to be part of this baby's life, kick rocks. I'm good. [00:17:53] Speaker ?: And he said, okay. [00:17:53] Speaker 1: You don't see after that, because, Nagea, I asked her those questions. You don't see after that, Blaze constantly calling her, trying to convince her to have an abortion, trying to manipulate her into having an abortion, blowing up her phone, smoothing her out. Because if ultimately his plan was going to be to try to kill the baby, it would have made way more sense to do it upfront than wait until she's almost six months pregnant. Why would you wait until somebody gets six months pregnant if that was your plan all along? Remember, she came back in contact with him, with her, December 31st. So he's going to drag it out and let that fetus get two months bigger? That would make sense. He could have done that a whole lot sooner. That would have made sense. That would have been easier. A miscarriage within the first 90 days, that makes sense. Some people don't even tell people they're pregnant for the first 90 days until they're sure that they get past that first trimester. But he'll wait until she's six months. So she makes a decision. She says, you go your way, I'll go mine. And he honors that. He honors her wishes. Now, if he was cooking up and stirring up this evil plan, why wouldn't he start the manipulation right off? Najeea told you that she liked him. She wanted to be with him. So it would have been easy for him to do that. But he didn't. And I think that's a very important fact. Because if you remember that text message that they read, excuse me, to you. I want to remind you of that text message. This is Jay. Remember they read this to you. Next time I'm tagging along for the adventure. [00:20:49] Speaker ?: LOL. [00:20:50] Speaker 1: Blaze says, LOL, okay. That's if you want, of course. [00:20:55] Speaker ?: This is Jay. LOL. [00:20:57] Speaker 1: He says, gotta still have a job first. And second, you probably ain't doing much traveling for a while anymore. When next season rolls around, I don't think you'll be able to just make impromptu trips on the weekends, considering you'll have other responsibilities. Not trying to be negative or nothing, but just being realistic. I mean, it would be great if you could, but it's unlikely. What does that mean? That means next time this year, you're gonna be a mother. She's 23, 24 years old. [00:21:42] Speaker ?: 24. [00:21:44] Speaker 1: You're gonna be a young mother. And that comes with a whole lot of responsibilities. So start getting your mind right. And if that's gonna be the mother of this child, let me give you a little advice. Men who handle their business, they want women, the mother of their children, to handle their business. So that they can set a good example for the child that they're raising. Don't let the state turn that into some kind of, oh, he was so mean. No, he was telling her the truth. And those of us that are mothers, we know the responsibility it takes to raise a child. There are often times, you miss trips because you gotta stay home with your child. You don't get to go away like you used to when you're single. You need to start thinking about those things. The lifestyle that you live, hanging out with your friends and drinking and having a good time. That's gonna change. And that's what he's telling her. Not to be mean, but to be real. What's wrong with that? Then he goes on to say, Oh, she says, LOL, okay, didn't mean to make it all serious. But yes, responsibilities will be different. But living life will still be happening as well. Just living differently. And I understand the realistic thinking of it as well. It's part of the big challenge, she says. And he says, yeah, especially for you. I remember getting pregnant. And my mother says something I'll never forget. It goes a long way. She said, honey, that's gonna be your baby. Because there's nothing like a mother with their child. Daddies love their children. Yes, they do. But they don't love them the way the mother does. That mother gets up every morning. That mother gotta calm hands. That mother has to get that child out there. And yes, the father should participate as well. But the reality of it is men don't come close on the daily activities that a mother does with their child. That's real. It's probably something he saw every day with his own mother. And she says, of course, wasn't trying to get into a serious talk for us. [00:24:35] Speaker ?: Sorry. [00:24:36] Speaker 1: He says, but we don't have to, we don't gotta be super serious. We didn't want to sell false dreams because, yeah, it would be great if you could come with on our work, my work trips. But I just feel like it's not realistic from a financial or just a feasible ability to randomly catch a flight and get away for a weekend. We're young. Money's already tight. We can't just spend money on get away trips on the weekend and this baby is coming. And I could lie to you or I could keep it real with you. Blaze wouldn't have been able to win here. It didn't matter. If he would have sold her a dream and lied to her on here, they would have been telling you that. But now he's keeping it real with her, being honest with her. And now that's wrong too. Would you rather him lie? The man was trying to be honest. The man was trying to be responsible. And somehow that's wrong too. [00:25:55] Speaker ?: It's no big deal. [00:25:59] Speaker 1: It's no big deal. I know you wasn't meaning it that way. But I just didn't want to be like, oh yeah, I'll bring you on the next one. Next year knowing that it's probably, and it's probably a lie. She says, totally understand babes. It's not like it can never happen because I'm having a baby. But realistic, it wouldn't be able to on the fly. Planning out things will always be an option. Life doesn't just stop because of it though. Laugh out loud. We're still going to have one, just living different. He says, I hear you. But you can't minimize how much things are going to change for you. You've got to be realistic that things are about to be hella different for you. And will change drastically. Your day to day life is not going to be the same. Yeah, life goes on, but it's forever altered and changed in a drastic way. I'm not saying it's over or anything. But it worries me sometimes when you downplay it. And act like it's no big deal. And I know you always want to be super optimistic and stuff. But I feel like you need to be honest with yourself about the situation. And know what's down the road for you. Now let's back up with that. He says, it worries me sometimes when you downplay it. That means there's something that has gone on in the past. That has caused him with the woman who is potentially going to be the mother of his child. To start having serious conversations with her. Hey man, let's plan this thing out. Start thinking right. So there's something going on there that made him feel like he should have this conversation with her. If that's going to be the mother of his child. What's wrong with that? In fact, that might be good. And then he says, I just want to make sure you understand the gravity of the situation. But we're preparing, preparing for those realities. That's all. She says, I'm not trying to minimize things. And sometimes I can be super optimistic. She's admitting to it. About things which can be scary. But I do sit and process that there will be drastic life changes. And prepare myself for the tough realities as much as I can. That are to come. I'm not just trying to make it seem like everything is going to be all peaches and cream. I am hearing and understanding everything you are saying. He liked it. And then he says, hey, what time are you going to work? She says around three. So she wasn't upset about the conversation. And if you remember, Mr. Devlin, when he was testifying about some of the text messages between them, do you remember when she said that it turned her on when he talked serious with her? That's what this is. That came out of her mouth. It turns me on when you talk serious to me. Some people like to date people and be with people that motivate them to be their best. People who hold their feet to the fight. Iron sharp as iron. And I always say, I never want to be the smartest person in the room because how can I get better? So when you're attracted to people who are responsible and that's who you attach yourself with, you're hoping that it makes you a better person. All of our parents have told us, watch your friends. Watch who you hang out with. Look at the five closest people in your life and you'll see your future. So she wouldn't have said that she's turned on by having serious conversations with him if she wasn't. And so that was the nature of that conversation. And so that was the nature of that conversation. Now, there was so much talk about how Blaze just totally disregarded the baby, totally disregarded her pregnancy, as if he was just pushing her off to the side, waiting for the perfect moment to kill her and the child. Because if you notice the tone of that text message conversation, it was talking about the future. Why talk about the future if your plan is to kill her anyway? You wouldn't even have to have those conversations. You could just continue to make her feel peachy and creamy. You don't make plans and you don't try to help the person become more realistic about what it takes to be a mother if it's not your intention for her to be alone. [00:31:31] Speaker ?: That doesn't even make sense. [00:31:34] Speaker 1: So I wanted to show you a few things because we didn't get to show you everything in the phone. Because if you remember when I asked Mr. Devlin, was there a whole lot more in there? He says, "Yes, we only provided a sample." So some of those text messages were, "Blaze told me last night he signed up for monthly subscriptions of diapers from this company, kudos, LOL." Why would he do that? If it was his intention to kill the child? Didn't you ever state at occasion you knew that he and Ms. Benning talked about naming the baby Jim? Do you remember when I asked Najaea Jackson that? [00:32:17] Speaker ?: And she says, "Yes." [00:32:19] Speaker 1: I said, "Well, that would be involved with the baby, wouldn't it?" She says, "I mean, yeah." Because remember, her name is Jay, his name is Blaze, and so they were going to name the baby Jim. That's being involved. It may not have been to the level that she would have wanted it, and I guarantee you yet again if we're talking about real life, there's a whole lot of women out there who would love for their significant others to be a little bit more involved in it. And I guarantee you yet again if we're talking about real life, there's a whole lot of women out there who would love for their significant others to be a little bit more involved with the child. I certainly know that I would. Here, does Blaze rub your belly, LOL, sometimes. If he's planning names, buying diaper subscriptions, and rubbing her belly, then what we're really talking about is that he wasn't doing it on the level that maybe she wanted it. It wasn't that he wasn't doing it at all. Let's go now to the day in question. Because we know how they've met. We know how they dated. We know what the understanding was. We know they both considered abortion at one time. One changed their mind quicker than the other. They got back together. They're having realistic conversations. And remember I told you about before, during, and after. Because nobody, no one saw Blaze put cocaine in Jade's drink. Nobody saw that. That's undisputed. Nobody saw Blaze give her alcohol. And we're going to talk about that a little later. Nobody saw that. So what that means is, this is a circumstantial case. And in order for you to come to a conclusion that is proper in a circumstantial case, because those are the most dangerous ones. Because nobody sees what happened. You have to consider all the surrounding circumstances. Most of the time, the crime is in the cleanup. And I'm sure you've heard that before. So you have your before bucket, your during bucket, and your after. What we do now, and like I said, I'm not doing this to shame anyone. Because if I was, I would have a ton of text messages up there about drugs and all kinds of stuff. But I'm not doing that. The only reason I'm sharing this information with you is so that you can have the facts. As they really are. So when we talk about before, there was only one person involved with drugs. And it wasn't Blaze. You didn't hear any evidence of Blaze purchasing cocaine, smoking weed, doing mushrooms, getting drunk, drinking alcohol. In fact, it was the exact opposite. The evidence you heard is that Blaze does not drink and does not do drugs. However, what you did hear is that Jade does drink to the point that she gets drunk. And she does drugs. So that's before. Remember this is circumstantial. So you consider all the facts surrounding it. Jade invites Blaze over. This is important because Blaze didn't know that Jade was going to invite him over that day. He had just seen her the day before. Remember, they had gone to the Waffle House. So there were two days before that he was with her. That he could have pulled off the elaborate plan, but he didn't. And so spontaneously she invites him over again. This is the third day in a row now. And so you see here. Also, will you be free around 7 o'clock? Yeah, I fell asleep watching Outer Banks and woke up to gun firing on the show. But yeah, I should be. LMAO, woke up confused, ASM. Okay, I'll have plans for us. You can be, you can come dressed, comfy to my house. Okay, sounds good. Sweet, I am getting off now, she says. And that is at 3:50. And he says, "How was work?" So now this spontaneous plan is 3:50. He has three hours to cook up the elaborate plan to kill her. Because remember, he didn't know she was going to ask him to come over that day. So, he comes over. When he comes over, it's 7 o'clock. He's there. And then Nigeia and Keontae shows up. He didn't know that. Right? Now, if all the while it was his plan to kill her that night, you would think that once Keontae and Nigeia showed up, if he had any kind of sense, he'll abort the plan. But no, he's brazen. Even though her best friend came over, saw him in the apartment, alone with her. Almost six months pregnant. 25 weeks, I believe the autopsy said. He decides, "I'm going to go ahead with the plan and kill her anyway." I know they saw me in here. Doesn't matter. I'm going to do it anyway. And so, they eat. Nigeia and Keontae, they come, they talk, they interact. He invites them to stay. He invites them to stay. Why would you invite them to stay if it's your plan to kill her? So you can have witnesses? No. They stay. [00:39:32] Speaker ?: They talk. [00:39:32] Speaker 1: He's shuffling UNO cards. Because the murderer who doesn't drink or do drugs plays UNO. And then kills pregnant women on his downtime. And then they leave. And then they talk and they dance. They take selfies. [00:39:53] Speaker ?: And then the call comes. [00:39:57] Speaker 1: It's 9:29. The first call from Nigeia. And the reason I wanted to lay this out this way was because there's been so much talk about this elaborate cleanup that he must have done. And I wanted you to see that there was no time for that. Because now we're in the during phase. And so 9:29, Nigeia calls and that call lasts six minutes, nine seconds. That takes us to 9:35 and some change. And I think the interchange between that time and when he calls his father at 9:38 and 12 seconds is about two minutes. Now mind you, Jade is having a medical emergency. All kind of things are going on. She's foaming at the mouth. [00:40:54] Speaker ?: She's shaking. [00:40:55] Speaker 1: She sounds like she's snoring. I want him to get a towel, go wipe her mouth, put her on her side. He's trying to tend to her. But he's being punished for that. And if he wouldn't have tended to her, he would have been punished for that. But even still, as he is calling or in the call at 9:29, when Nigeia says that she's saying, "You put something in my drink, what did you put in my drink?" Do you remember the text message that Nigeia sent as a result of hearing you put something in my drink? Are you talking to me? I want to ask, I want everybody to think about your best friend. And your best friend calls you on the phone. I want you to envision that. And you pick up the phone and you say hello. And they tell you on the other phone you hear, "You're stabbing me. You're shooting me. You're killing me." Are you going to say, "Are you talking to me?" You know they're not talking to you. You're going to say, "What's wrong? What's going on over there? Do I need to come get you? Do I need to call 911?" That's a natural response. But instead, you send a text saying, "Are you talking to me?" Remember, nobody else heard exactly what was going on on that phone call. Nobody. But Najee. So let's look at the facts surrounding that. As much as she says that this was the worst thing she's ever heard. Her friend was in so much danger. So much distress. It was horrible. It was scary. She knew because she just left there. She knew that he was in that apartment. She was in that apartment alone with the man who was trying to kill him. But she doesn't call 911. Instead, she calls Keontae, who only met Jade twice. And apparently, he gets on the phone. They're talking. At least he says he can hear her trying to talk. So if she's trying to talk, Dr. Ola Sugar told you she has to be breathing in order to do that. Remember, Keontae actually said he did hear her voice. But even with that, as dire straits as Najee explains that it is, he goes out with his buddies anyway. [00:43:49] Speaker ?: Think about that. Think about that. [00:43:52] Speaker 1: If it was as horrible and dangerous, why would this guy put his clothes on and go on out anyway? And then remember, Najee immediately after hanging up, called Jade's mom and shares with her what she heard, what Jade said. And notwithstanding that, Jade's mom sends Blaise a text and says, "Oh, the baby's good. The heartbeat is okay." If it was as serious and people believed Najee or believed in the credibility of her, do you think that Jade's mother would text that man and tell him and give him an update about the baby? Are you going to text the man who's just been accused of killing your child and give them an update about the baby? Are you going to do that? There's something not right about that. But that's what happened. And so right after that phone call, he calls his dad on the phone with him for 30 seconds, because that's what he told the police officer, that he talked to his dad and his dad said, "Son, hang up with me and call 911. What are you doing on the phone with me?" He does that and within 60 -- so if that call lasted 30 seconds, that takes us to 9:38 and 42 seconds. And at 9:38 and 58 seconds, Blaise is on the phone with 911. And you heard that call. You heard the desperation in his voice. He didn't know the address to give the man. You remember that interchange. So the only way to get the address would be to run to the front to get the address. And if you remember what he says, I want you guys to pay attention to this. He said the address is 1522-1550 Lebanon Pike. Most of the time when people give an address, it's only one numeric value. It makes sense that he ran to the front of the apartment or the condominium complex because that's the exact address he gave them. So then, after that -- I went the wrong way -- then he gets off the phone with 911 and she calls back. So if it was six minutes -- and somehow -- I'm sorry, the 911 call was nine -- almost nine minutes. So that would take him right around to 9:47 and Nigel calls back to Jade's phone. [00:46:55] Speaker ?: And he answers. [00:46:58] Speaker 1: He didn't have to answer. It was Jade's phone. He could have said I was dealing with an emergency. But he picked up the phone and gave her an update. And he said, he's doing the responsible thing. Then after that, that call lasted about two minutes, she says. That takes us to around 9:49. EMS arrives at 9:48. And if you look at that slip from the EMS, because you'll have the right to look at the evidence, it's going to show you that EMS arrived about 9:48. And you heard him say, I can hear the silence. I think I can hear the silence. And then he goes out and runs to get them. Remember, on the call, the man says, put her on her side. So he did that. Then if you remember, as much as she didn't want to, she told you that Blaze ran out to meet them, at least at the door. So perhaps she rolled over while he was gone. [00:48:08] Speaker ?: We don't know. [00:48:09] Speaker 1: But nobody's calling 911 and doing all those things to help. Only to put her on the side and try to kill her. So by now, EMS is there. So the time for cleanup is gone. Where was all this time for him to clean up? [00:48:28] Speaker ?: It's not there. [00:48:29] Speaker 1: It's not there because remember those selfies was less than 60 seconds before the emergency call. The time just isn't there. [00:48:41] Speaker ?: So that's during. [00:48:42] Speaker 1: So when we think about during, there was only one person who called 911. Only one. As sick and as dangerous that it was described to be. Only one person called 911. Frantic. Running to get the address. Doing everything that he could do. That's during. [00:49:11] Speaker ?: That's during. [00:49:15] Speaker 1: Now let's talk about after. The investigation. [00:49:19] Speaker ?: Listen. [00:49:20] Speaker 1: What's unfair is three years later. Blaze is now held responsible to try to prove himself innocent when one, that's not the law. And two, a lot of the evidence is gone. That's unfair. How can I prove my innocence when Detective Reese said he let the video surveillance camera get erased? How does the lead detective not get that surveillance camera that would have showed Blaze coming and going. Now Jay and Keontae coming and going. If he really ran to the sign, we would have seen that. If he came there with something in his hand, alcohol and/or cocaine, perhaps we would have seen that on the video. If somebody else showed up there that day, perhaps we would have seen that. But they allowed it to get destroyed. So, Blaze didn't know that. Remember, he didn't get arrested for a year later. If he knew he should, the burden was going to be shifted from what the law was, then maybe he would have done the investigation himself. But he was trusting the police to do the investigation. Because that's their job. And we know that she met with the drug dealer that day, albeit it was for Mario or whoever it was for. If this is a drug overdose, I really want y'all to think about this. If this is a drug overdose, why wouldn't the police officer go talk to the drug dealer? If it was a financial crime, you'd chase the money. How in the world, in a drug crime, you don't bother to speak with the dude who sold her drugs that day, whoever it was for? Whether she met up with him or not, that's not for us to have to figure out. But he didn't. So now you don't talk to key witnesses. And there were other drug dealers in our phone, too. They didn't call any of them. You let the surveillance video get destroyed, that possibly could have exonerated him. But we'll never know that. And now he will be punished for it. We let the cup that was supposedly the missing cup, the crime scene investigation team. They didn't see it. It was on the counter. Somehow we missed it. But all along, there was this missing cup that Blaze must have taken. Because he cleaned up. We already seen there weren't time to clean up. And he had taken the cup with him. The whole time, Detective Reese had to tell you, we missed the cup. It was there the whole time. Well, perhaps if Blaze knew one day he would be sitting here facing felony murder charges, he'd have had the cup tested himself. But he can't do that now. And he shouldn't have to do that now. Because that's not the law. [00:53:00] Speaker ?: That was their job. [00:53:01] Speaker 1: And if it was cocaine in it, they would have known it. But they did take a bunch of glasses. They took all kinds of things from out of there, dish wise. And there wasn't anything on it. [00:53:14] Speaker ?: Anything. [00:53:17] Speaker 1: And think about this. Remember how they talked about all this cocaine? One thing they cannot get away from is that she had coca ethylene in her system. They can't get as much as they would love to. They told you first it was coming from vanilla extract. Don't believe that. Or two, because of some of the treatment she got at Vanderbilt. There is no treatment at Vanderbilt that leaves you with coca ethylene in your system. When cocaine and alcohol come together. That means, think about this. That means that he would have had to put cocaine and alcohol in either her water or her lemonade. And the chef. Chefs have sensitive palates. They taste food. That's what they do. They'll taste something and they'll tell you what ingredient is in it. Because they're trained that way. She didn't taste alcohol or cocaine. Neither one of them. And the amount that they're saying that he gave her. Does that make sense? How do you do that? How do you put that much cocaine in somebody's drink? And alcohol. And they come out saying it tastes funny. It's going to taste a whole lot worse than just funny. You're not going to keep drinking it. And according to the state, it was so much that it caused this overdose. So she kept drinking cocaine and alcohol, the chef, and never ever noticed it. [00:55:11] Speaker ?: No. [00:55:13] Speaker 1: So then we go to the fact that Stephen first, Lauren Webber, went to the scene. [00:55:28] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:55:29] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:55:33] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:55:34] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:55:40] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:55:44] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:56:22] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:56:23] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:56:29] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:56:30] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:56:35] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:56:36] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:56:57] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:56:58] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:57:01] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:57:03] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:57:21] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:57:22] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:57:27] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:57:28] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:57:31] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:57:32] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:57:50] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:57:51] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:58:08] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:58:09] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:58:26] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:58:27] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. [00:58:28] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:58:29] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:58:35] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:58:36] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:58:38] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:58:40] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:58:50] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:58:51] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:59:02] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:59:03] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. [00:59:04] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:59:07] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:59:22] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:59:24] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:59:26] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:59:27] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:59:29] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:59:32] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:59:36] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:59:37] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:59:54] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:59:55] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [00:59:58] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [00:59:59] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [01:00:03] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [01:00:04] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. [01:00:08] Speaker ?: And then we go to the scene. [01:00:09] Speaker 1: And then we go to the scene. And then we go to the scene. There it is right there. Why didn't he talk? I don't have a lot of time left. So I'm going to go through it quickly. You don't have any time left. May I have five minutes? Yes, sir. You got a minute. I've given you the investigation. That's the towel he took. I got 60 seconds. I'm going to do my best. That's the towel he took. That's where he got it from. If he was cleaning up, he would have fixed those tabs. But he didn't. That's the surveillance video. That's that missing cup. It was sitting there the entire time. No one in, no one out. That's the V8 bottle. It wasn't in there. You see the lemonade. You don't see the V8. And on those other pictures, you don't see it either. So that's the communication log. Coca ethylene is in the system. You're going to have the reports. It's there. And it was there in the vomit. And all of these doctors told you that. And the autopsy report at the end of the day. Don't forget what I've shared with you. At the end of the day, even the medical examiner can't come to a conclusion. And with all these surrounding circumstances, how can you? Now I told you that when you get back there, you're going to be tired and it's going to be long. And you promised me that you would not let anyone change your convictions of what you believe, no matter how long it takes. Because you said. Because you said if they can't make a decision in the most important affairs of your life, that you wouldn't let them do it for blaze. I thank you so much for your patience and for being here. And the Taylor family does as well. I won't get to get back up here and make another argument. Because I don't, we don't have the burden they do. So when you get back there, you make the argument for me. Thank you.