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Where is Taylor Parker now? Netflix documentary Maternal Instinct to revisit Reagan Simmons-Hancock's killing
The Netflix documentary Maternal Instinct, premiering June 12, examines Taylor Parker's shocking murder of her pregnant friend, Reagan Simmons-Hancock, in 2020.
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The Netflix documentary Maternal Instinct has turned attention to one of the most disturbing murder cases. Maternal Instinct premieres on June 12, 2026 and revolves around Taylor Parker, the Texas woman who killed her pregnant friend and cutting her unborn baby from the womb in 2020.
The documentary is directed by Jessica Dimmock, who also worked on The Texas Killing Fields and Unsolved Mysteries. It is produced by Story Syndicate. Netflix has described the documentary as exploring "one woman's web of deception and the tragedy it brought upon those who trusted her most."
Who is Taylor Parker?
Taylor Rene Parker faked her own pregnancy for ten months. She used a silicone belly, forged ultrasounds, and staged fake gender reveal parties to convince those around her, including her boyfriend Wade Griffin, a local hog trapper, that she was expecting a child.
On October 9, 2020, in New Boston, Texas, Parker murdered 21-year-old Reagan Simmons-Hancock, who was 35 weeks pregnant. Parker then removed Simmons-Hancock's unborn baby, Braxlynn Sage Hancock, from her abdomen. The baby did not survive.
Shortly after the attack, Parker was pulled over for speeding on a Texas highway. She told the state trooper who stopped her that she had just given birth on the side of the road and that her newborn was not breathing. Both were rushed to a local hospital, where the baby was pronounced dead. Doctors who examined Parker found no evidence of childbirth.
Parker's plan, according to the prosecution, took months to develop and was motivated by her need to conceal from her lover, Wade Griffin, the fact that she was unable to conceive after a hysterectomy. Parker pretended to be pregnant rather than confessing.
She also offered friends $100,000 to serve as surrogates. When it didn't work, she focused on Ms. Simmons-Hancock, whom she had previously taken pictures of for her engagement and wedding.
Where is Taylor Parker now?
Parker was convicted for kidnapping and capital murder in Bowie County, Texas in October 2022. A jury sentenced her to death. She became the seventh woman on death row in Texas and the first woman in the state to receive a death sentence in 12 years. Her legal bids to avoid execution have failed at every turn. In 2025, appeals court judges rejected her convictions appeal. In May 2026, the United States Supreme Court denied a plea to hear her case.
As of June 2026, Parker remains on death row at the Patrick L. O'Daniel women's prison in Gatesville, Texas. An execution date can only be set once all possible appeals have been exhausted.
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