Heartbreaking Case! S.C. Woman’s Guilty Plea in Newborn Daughter’s Death Results in 22-year Sentence
A 27-year-old woman will serve more than two decades in prison for the killing of her newborn daughter, whom she gave birth to in her car before putting her body in a trash bag.
The South Carolina Solicitor’s Office for the 11th Circuit stated on Wednesday, May 8, that Brennan Geller was sentenced to 22 years in the South Carolina Department of Corrections after pleading guilty to homicide by child abuse against her newborn, Kimberly Taylor. Geller will be ineligible for parole under state law.
According to the solicitor’s office, a family member discovered the deceased infant in a trash bag in Geller’s Jeep Laredo in August 2018. The Lexington Medical Center informed the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department of the discovery, and an autopsy revealed “air was present in the infant’s lungs, along with other indications of a live birth.” The solicitor’s office stated that doctors determined the baby weighed 7 pounds, 6 ounces, and was born after 37 weeks gestation, indicating Taylor was full term.
Further inquiry found that on August 3, 2018, Geller allegedly left work early and proceeded to the parking lot. According to prosecutors, Geller googled “what to expect while in labor” around 10:35 a.m., and about nine hours later, she looked up and asked, “When do contractions stop?”
Investigators discovered that Geller, who was a Midlands Technical College student at the time, “secretly gave birth” in her car without medical assistance.
The solicitor’s office claims Geller “repeatedly denied her pregnancy to friends and acquaintances, including her boyfriend,” Edwin Taylor. Geller allegedly informed her lover on the night she gave birth that she was still at work, despite having already departed.
After giving birth, Geller allegedly cut the umbilical cord with a pair of scissors before placing her body in a trash bag. The solicitor’s office stated, “Doctors would have testified at trial that suffocation could occur under these circumstances.” The Lexington County Coroner declared the infant’s death a homicide.
Geller apparently encountered issues after delivering birth and was treated to Lexington Medical Center, where she initially denied giving birth to medical workers and an investigator. Officers reportedly examined Geller’s Jeep, discovering scissors and towels used during Kimberly Taylor’s delivery. According to the solicitor’s office, medical specialists believe the infant was healthy and had no obvious congenital problems.
Edwin Taylor reportedly spoke at the sentencing hearing and was unaware his girlfriend was pregnant until the investigation. Prosecutors claim he sought parental rights so that his daughter may have a “proper burial.” Edwin Taylor gave the baby a name.
According to the solicitor’s office, Edwin Taylor stated, “I was never given the opportunity to hold her in my arms; I can only hold her in my heart.” It aches my heart to know that she isn’t here with me right now, making some of the childhood memories that a father and daughter should make at the age of five.