A Tennessee woman who was all smiles for her mugshot after she was arrested for allegedly killing her grandparents pleaded guilty to the crime on Thursday, 24th Judicial District Attorney Matthew Stowe announced.
Katelyn Taylor, 29, was initially charged with criminal homicide in the deaths of Eugene McDaniel, 82, and Celeste McDaniel, 67, in March.
The McDaniels were found dead in their home in Camden when police conducted a welfare check after receiving a call that one of the residents hadn’t shown up for work, as CrimeOnline previously reported.
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Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Hedge said that Taylor’s charges were upgraded to first degree murder after the investigation revealed “additional evidence,” although she did not say what that evidence was.
The plea allows Taylor to avoid the death penalty, Stowe said.
“This agreement of a guilty plea will spare the family of the victims the trauma of having to relive this horrible crime every year or two,” Stowe said in a statement that blamed “pro-criminal advocates and some activist judges” for the “endless appeal processes” of death penalty cases.
Stowe said that each of the first degree murder charges carries a life sentence, which will be served concurrently. Taylor will be eligible for parole in 2072.
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[Feature Photo: Katelyn Taylor/Benton County Jail]
