A Los Angeles County couple beheaded their two oldest children in what prosecutors called a “monstrous” act of violence that stunned their community. On Monday, the couple was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Lancaster residents Maurice Jewel Taylor Sr., 39, and his wife, Natalie Sumiko Brothwell, 49, were found guilty of two felony counts of first-degree murder in November.
Taylor and Brothwell were each sentenced to six years in prison plus two consecutive life sentences without parole, according to Venusse D. Dunn, spokeswoman for the district attorney's office.
The court imposed a 10-year protective order on the couple's two surviving children.
Taylor was a personal trainer in Santa Monica and his clients described him as “calm” and “trustworthy” shortly after his arrest in December 2020.
When he didn't call into Zoom meetings with his clients, they became concerned and called the authorities.
Officers arrived and found the children's bodies in separate bedrooms of the home, Lt. Brandon Dean said. Sheriff's deputies identified the two children as a 12-year-old boy and a 13-year-old girl.
At trial, a jury found the parents guilty of stabbing and beheading the children.
“Their two youngest children, ages 8 and 9, were then forced to view their siblings' bodies and remain confined to their rooms without food for several days,” the district attorney's office said.
The crime shocked the Lancaster community and those who knew the family.
“This was a monstrous act of cruelty that destroyed an entire family,” the Los Angeles County District Court said. Lawyer. Nathan Hochman said. “Two innocent children were brutally murdered and their little brothers had to live through unimaginable horror.”
