Woman accused of killing woman and cutting baby from her womb researched how to fake pregnancy, agent testifies

A state police investigator testified Tuesday that a woman accused of killing a pregnant woman and removing her unborn child conducted intensive research on how to fake a pregnancy convincingly. The testimony came in the capital murder trial of Taylor Rene Parker for the October 2020 killing of Reagan Simmons-Hancock and her unborn child.

Special Agent Dustin Estes of the Texas Department of Public Safety testified that Parker viewed numerous YouTube videos on delivering and caring for babies.

On the day of the killing, she watched a video on the physical exam of an infant delivered pre-term at 35 weeks, he said. Simmons-Hancock had a 35-week pregnancy when she was killed.