July 1, 2026 –  In one of the highest profile murder cases Nashville has seen in years, a Davidson County jury found former NFL Scout Blaise Taylor guilty of murdering his girlfriend and their unborn child.    The 30-year-old former college football standout now faces life in prison and will be formally sentenced on September 9th.

Taylor, who was arrested in 2024, was accused of poisoning girlfriend Jade Benning’s pink lemonade with cocaine in February 2023. Benning died March 6, 2023, on her 25th birthday, and her 5-month-old female fetus, which Taylor is believed to have fathered, died on Feb. 27, 2023.

Benning was rushed to the hospital after Taylor called 911, saying Benning was having an allergic reaction. Her condition quickly became critical, and she was unable to speak with police before she died.

The Nashville District Attorney’s Prosecution Team included Deputy District Attorney Roger Moore, Criminal Court Division II Team Leader Jan Norman, and Assistant District Attorney Kendall Ponchillia.  Throughout the grueling 10-day long trial, which was carried gavel-to-gavel live nationally by Court TV, Victim Witness Coordinator Director Tracey Houston comforted Benning’s friends and family watching in the courtroom.

For as long as the actual trial took, the jury deliberations were surprisingly quick.   Even with a lunch break, the panel returned their unanimous verdicts in just under two hours.

Taylor, 30, was found guilty on all four counts — one count of second-degree murder of Benning, one count of first-degree murder for the unborn child, one count of first-degree felony murder of Benning and one count of first-degree felony murder of the unborn child.   Taylor received three life sentences:  One for the First-Degree Murder conviction, and the other two for the Felony Murder convictions.

A former college football standout at Arkansas State, Taylor was working as a defensive analyst for the University of Utah at the time of his arrest. Before that, he had worked in the Tennessee Titans scouting department for four years.

Benning’s family and friends were pleased and relieved following the jury’s verdict, expressing appreciation to the District Attorney’s office for what they called ‘relentless pursuit of Justice for Jade.’

Photos:  Blaise Taylor learns his fate.

Prosecutors Jan Norman, Kendall Ponchillia, and Roger Moore.  Group picture of the Nashville DA’s team with  Jade’s family and friends.

The Nashville DA’s team with Jades’ mother, Bridget Burks, and witness Nijaiha Jackson.  VWC Tracey Houston with family in court.

May 4th, 2026 –  The man who gunned down an 18-year-old Belmont University freshman in 2023 will spend the next 38 years in prison, without the chance for parole.  32-year-old Shaquille Taylor pleaded guilty to Second Degree Murder in the death of Jillian Ludwig, the young University student who had arrived in Nashville only months earlier from her home in New Jersey.  Prosecutors Jan Norman and Deputy District Attorney Roger Moore told the Judge that Taylor was part of a gang and was shooting at another gang inside a car, but one of the bullets struck Ludwig in the head.  She was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center where she died the next day.

Jillian’s parents, Matthew and Jessica, gave powerful victim impact statements after the guilty plea.  “There is no worse pain than a father who loses his only daughter to murder,” said Matthew Ludwig.   Jillian’s mother, Jessica, added: “Until that glorious day when we shall meet again, I love you, Jillian.”  Both parents spoke through tears, sharing Jillian’s final moments, and pain they’ve endured.

A statement was read on behalf of Taylor at the stand which said, “Mr. And Mrs. Ludwig, I’m sorry for your loss. I wish I could take that bullet back. I was not aiming for your daughter at all. If I would have known she was walking in the park, I would’ve never shot her way that evening.”

The case has drawn widespread attention, largely due to ongoing questions about Taylor’s mental capacity.  Taylor had a history of criminal activity, but when deemed ‘incompetent to stand trial” by medical professionals during previous evaluations, the District Attorney’s office was forbidden from prosecuting, and Taylor was released.   Noting this loophole in the criminal justice system, along with the violent nature of many offenders who are deemed mentally ‘incompetent to stand trial’, Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk predicted a tragedy could easily happen.   Jillian was shot and killed just 12 days later.

Her death prompted DA Funk, along with Jillian’s family, and Tennessee State Legislators like Representative William Lamberth and Senator Cameron Sexton, to craft Jillian’s Law.  The law requires certain defendants found incompetent to stand trial be committed for treatment, rather than just released.  It also prohibits those individuals from possessing a firearm.   The Ludwig’s now plan on helping other states draft similar legislation and have set up a non-profit called ‘Rae of Light Foundation’ to assist in that effort.  The foundation also provides scholarships to budding musicians, as Jillian was a talented singer and musician who came to Nashville’s Belmont University to continue her musical career.

March 5, 2026 – A Davidson County jury found 28-year-old Leronte Burks GUILTY this week of attempted murder and several other charges for a 2021 shooting that almost killed a female motel clerk.   Judith Edwards and her husband were the managers of the Cumberland Inn Motel on West Trinity Lane in September, 2021, when Leronte Burks became angry over a parking issue at the motel.    Burks ripped up a towing notice left on his vehicle, then began firing at Ms. Edwards as she fled back to the motel office.   While the defendant reloaded a second extended magazine, Ms. Edwards ducked behind an SUV as 14 rounds were fired at her in a barrage of gunfire , striking several cars and endangering other patrons in the motel parking lot.

In a strange twist, eyewitness Lenzo Smith Jr. corroborated Ms. Edwards’s story at a preliminary hearing several years ago, but Mr. Smith has since passed away.  Still, his earlier testimony was preserved by the District Attorney’s office and was able to be admitted at this week’s trial.  Lead Prosecutor Jan Norman says that preserved testimony from a now-deceased first-hand witness was critical to securing a Guilty verdict.

Burks was found Guilty on ALL four counts:  Attempted First Degree Murder, Employing a Firearm during a Dangerous Felony, Aggravated Assault, and Felon in Possession of a Weapon.   His sentencing is set for mid-April.

Prosecutor Jan Norman, Exteriors of Cumberland Inn on West Trinity Lane in Nashville

February 26, 2026 – A man who decided to represent himself in his own murder trial instead of relying on a defense attorney or public defender may wish he had not made that move.

55-year-old James Harris was found guilty of Second Degree Murder (a Class A felony) by a Davidson County Criminal Court Jury of killing 44-year-old Terece Patterson in an East Nashville home in March of 2023.  The jury also found Harris guilty of being a Felon in Possession of a Weapon (a Class B felony).   Harris claimed the killing was in self-defense after he and his friend, Patterson, had gotten into an argument.  Nashville Assistant District Attorney Stiles Ashby argued the case was not self-defense, and that not only did Harris knowingly kill Patterson, he fled the home and disposed of the murder weapon.

During the trial, Harris was admonished several times by Criminal Court Division II Judge Angelita Dalton for his continued outbursts and was even removed from the courtroom during Prosecutor Ashby’s closing argument to jurors.  With the guilty conviction, Harris faces life in prison, given a previous violent crime felony conviction.

Patterson’s family was thrilled with the verdict, and said Justice was done for Terese.   They were in the courtroom when the verdict was read, alongside Victim Witness Coordinator Paris Simmons of the Nashville District Attorney’s Office.   Sentencing for Harris is set for April 16th, 2026.

Pictures:   ADA Ashby and VWC Paris Simmons with the Patterson family.

Criminal Court Judge Angelita Dalton admonishing defendant James Harris.

January 16, 2026 – The Nashville District Attorney’s office secured a Guilty Conviction against 61-year-old Melvin Nettles for the 2021 murder of Jadon Smith.

Nettles was sentenced to life in prison following the conviction.   Jadon Simon was 34 years old when he got into an altercation with Nettles at a Nashville convenience store.   As Simon fled, Nettles continued shooting at his vehicle, which was also carrying Simon’s children, ages 4 and 11.   Simon’s vehicle eventually came to a stop at the intersection of Douglas Avenue and Jones Avenue. The children jumped out of the vehicle and hid.    Nettles approached the vehicle, removed Simon and drove it away from the area.

Nettles was found guilty of first-degree premeditated murder, aggravated kidnapping and felon in possession of a weapon.    Jadon’s mother told the Prosecutors Brian Ewald and Emma Lawson that her son can “finally rest in peace, knowing justice has been served”.

The Tennessean – October 30, 2025 – If current trends hold, Nashville could end up with its lowest homicide rate in 60 years.

The robbery rate could hit its lowest mark since 1972.

These are just a couple of the public safety milestones Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell flagged earlier in October. It’s not new messaging for O’Connell, who over the past several months has highlighted Nashville’s declining violent crime rates, which he said have dropped across the board in all tracked categories on a year-over-year basis.

One more indicator of Nashville’s positive trajectory: O’Connell said the city didn’t see a single homicide in September, a feat he said may be a first in modern memory.

“We’re seeing historically low moments of these particular categories of crime, and it’s happening at a time where we’re making strategic investments,” O’Connell said.

Here’s how, and what comes next as O’Connell aims to continue the trend in 2026.

O’Connell points to several strategies that could explain Nashville’s current moment in public safety.

One of them is bringing on new Metro Nashville Police Department officers, 250 of them since O’Connell took office in 2023. Then there’s the dedicated public transit security division that launched earlier this year, expanded safety resources that have rolled out at Nashville’s public schools and MNPD’s new Southeast Precinct that will soon open in Antioch.

“All of this has happened while we’ve made strategic improvements in response times, letting reporting frameworks change, using 311 more effectively, changing response times at our Department of Emergency Communications,” O’Connell said. “Across the board, we’re very excited to see what we want.”

The list doesn’t end there. O’Connell also pointed to Nashville’s new Office of Youth Safety and the continued growth of mental health co-response initiatives like MNPD’s Partners in Care program and the Nashville Fire Department’s Responders Engaged and Committed to Health program, both of which have expanded in the past year or so.

That progress comes at a time when progressive-led cities from coast to coast are experiencing heightened scrutiny from state and federal lawmakers, with crime the impetus for the National Guard’s presence just over three hours away in Memphis.

Emphasizing Nashville’s progress to state and federal partners has been a focus this year, O’Connell said. But those conversations aren’t meant to imply that there’s not still more to accomplish.

“I also don’t want to paint it as a picture that’s rosier than it is,” O’Connell said. “We still know we have work to do. We still know there’s progress to continue putting down pressure on crime. We still know that we do want to have police presence be understood and felt in communities that it makes sense.”

“We want to continue to look at meaningful ways to reduce gun violence,” O’Connell said. “Within that, we’ve also seen reductions in non-lethal gun violence incidents, so we want to continue that pressure.”

That means looking at expanding gun violence intervention measures, O’Connell said, and improving on the Office of Family Safety’s efforts to standardize the city’s firearms dispossession standards for cases like domestic violence.

O’Connell said increased capacity in the city’s budget should boost efforts to expand the staff at the Office of Youth Safety, and O’Connell’s staff is in the middle of reviewing applications for a director of violence prevention and crime prevention in the mayor’s office.

Part of the work lies in illustrating Nashville’s progress to community members who may otherwise not be aware of it, or who personally feel less safe because they’ve been the victim of a crime directly. O’Connell said it’s just as important to highlight resources like the Office of Family Safety’s and MNPD’s family intervention program.

“I know this from firsthand experience — anyone who becomes a victim of a crime, there is no easy way back to feeling safe,” O’Connell said. “If you have seen break-ins in your neighborhood, if you have had a property crime occur, if you have been a victim of a robbery, those are the points of people (feeling) unsafe. So I also want people to understand the resources we have for victims of crime.”

August 15, 2025 – A Davidson County jury found 60-year-old Roger McElroy GUILTY of killing a fellow driver and injuring a Metro Police officer in a horrific 3-vehicle crash that occurred in the Joelton area of North Nashville in 2020.  The 60-year-old McElroy admitted he smoked marijuana and took prescription medication before the high-speed crash that killed Steven Toth and injured MNPD officer Benjamin Cantrell.

Assistant District Attorney and Vehicular Crimes Team Leader, General Matt Gilbert played video during the trial from officer Cantrell’s dash cam showing McElroy’s speeding red pick-up blow through a stop sign at the intersection of Clarksville Pike and Bernard Road at a high rate of speed, killing the 66-year-old Toth and injuring officer Cantrell, who was on his way home from his police shift.   General Gilbert stated that it’s one of the first times the combination of prescription medication and marijuana have resulted in a fatal crash and an eventual conviction at a jury trial.  At the time of the crash, McElroy had two previous convictions for driving under the influence.

After 10 years of waiting, justice is awarded to a young rape victim.

Congratulations to Assistant District Attorneys Lauren Hogan and Macy Pesavento, who secured a Guilty conviction on July 15th, 2025, against defendant Leopold Mpawinayo on the Class A Felony charge of Rape of a Child.    The victim was only 12 years old in 2015 when Mpawinayo picked up the victim, who was a stranger to him, and raped her.   Although the victim reported the crime immediately, the DNA didn’t hit CODIS (the national DNA crime database) until five years later.  Mpawinayo was then connected to this case, and several other crimes.

Prosecutors praised Crimes Against Children Detective Rob Carrigan, who was able to locate the victim almost 10 years after the crime.  Victim Witness Coordinators Alex Ondrus and Hannah Estes provided support to the victim, who was finally able to get Justice after years of waiting and wondering if her attacker would ever be held accountable.

In the end, it only took the jury 30 minutes to find Mpawinayo Guilty of Rape of a Child, which is a mandatory Range 2 offense, carrying prison time of 25 to 40 years at 100%.  His sentencing will be September 4^th.

A Davidson County jury found 26-year-old Deandre Conway Guilty Thursday night (June 26, 2025) on all eleven counts he faced in the October, 2022 deaths of a Nashville man and Cheatham County teenager.  24-year-old Terry Farmer was shot to death during an altercation with Conway at a Madison area apartment complex.  Following the shooting, Conway fled the scene in a Chevrolet pickup, and plowed into a Toyota Rav 4, killing 17-year-old Landen Guye.  Several other young people in the Toyota were also injured in the crash.  Conway fled from the crash scene on foot and was later arrested by Metro Police TITANS detectives in the Hendersonville area.  During the emotional 4-day trial, prosecutors called more than two dozen witnesses, many of them family members of the two individuals who were killed.  After just 3 hours of deliberations, Conway was found guilty of charges ranging from Second Degree Murder and Reckless Vehicular Homicide to multiple counts of Reckless Aggravated Assault.  If sentenced to serve all of his time consecutively (back-to-back), Conway could spend more than 60 years behind bars.  Sentencing will be August 20th in front of Criminal Court Judge Mark Fishburn.

Deandre Conway                                        Terry Farmer                                         Landen Guye                                              Photos from the crash scene 10/2022