US3 min(s) read
Published 15:40 16 Jun 2026 GMT
The horrifying murder of Reagan Simmons-Hancock in 2020 remains one of the most disturbing criminal cases in recent years.
The tragedy is now being revisited in the documentary, Maternal Instinct, which explores both the crime itself and the actions of Taylor Parker, the woman convicted of killing Simmons-Hancock and abducting her child.
The documentary includes interviews with people who knew Parker and claim they had concerns about her behavior before the crime took place.
Parker was sentenced to death four years ago and is currently being held at the Patrick L. O’Daniel Unit, a Texas prison that houses female inmates. Since her conviction, Parker has pursued several appeals.
In November 2025, she lost an appeal challenging her sentence, before more recently, in May 2026, when the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review her case, leaving her conviction and death sentence in place. However, authorities have not yet set an execution date.
In a February 2025 interview with journalist Lawrence Wright for The New Yorker, Parker reflected on the case and admitted she initially struggled to accept responsibility for what had happened.
She explained that at first she convinced herself that the accusations against her were untrue. That changed after she saw autopsy photographs related to the case.
Parker acknowledged that she believes prison is where she belongs, saying: “It’s the hardest thing to admit, but I do not believe in going home for myself. My place is here. I stand firm on the belief you do not deserve to have something you took from another. That’s part of the acknowledgement and acceptance process on the road to redemption.”
Parker and her eventual victim became friends after Simmons-Hancock's engagement to her future husband, Homer Hancock. In 2019, Simmons-Hancock hired Parker to take photographs at her wedding, and the two remained close afterward.
By 2020, Simmons-Hancock was pregnant with her first child. Around the same time, Parker also claimed to be expecting a baby. According to the documentary, Parker even told Simmons-Hancock that she was preparing to be induced.
Simmons-Hancock's sister, Emily, says Parker never raised suspicions among family members and was frequently present at gatherings and family events. Simmons-Hancock's mother, Jessica Brookes, recalled that Parker often positioned herself as someone who was always available to help the woman she would later murder.
The friendship took a horrifying turn shortly after the two women discussed their pregnancies.
According to prosecutors, Parker went to Simmons-Hancock's home and murdered the 21-year-old before removing the child from her womb. Authorities later determined the baby was not breathing.
Parker then contacted emergency services and attempted to convince authorities that the child was her own. Investigators said she even tried to conceal the deception by placing the umbilical cord inside her clothing.
Medical professionals quickly determined that Parker had not given birth to the baby. She was arrested shortly afterward.
Initially charged with capital murder and kidnapping, Parker went to trial, where a jury found her guilty, and she was ultimately sentenced to death for the killing of Simmons-Hancock and the abduction of her child.
The new documentary revisits the events leading up to the crime, the investigation that followed, and the lasting impact the tragedy has had on Simmons-Hancock's family and community.
