Expecting
There are particular crimes in this world that are unforgivable. No matter how you spin them, they’ll never lean in the favor of the criminal. Such a crime is murdering a pregnant woman. Not only is the death a crime on its own, the death of someone who never even got the opportunity to live is incomparably tragic. One particular man did just that. His reason? He wanted to avoid child support. To save some money that he could have easily and honestly earned, he hired a man to shoot the woman in the head, relieving him of his responsibilities. Keep reading to find out the man who has a woman killed after she refuses abortion to avoid paying child support.
27-year-old Crystal Taylor was pregnant for just over five months when a man put a gun to her head and pulled the trigger. For years now, the case has been tossed around this way and that, but it’s finally gaining more traction to answer some questions that have never been fully satisfied. The article continues on the next pages.
Cause and effect
When Taylor told the father of her child, Derek Smyer, that she was pregnant, he hardly took the news positively. His initial reaction was to urge her to get an abortion. When she refused, he allegedly decided to take action, according to My News LA.
In Smyer’s defense
Despite the coincidences and the motives, Smyer was apparently a very good father to Williams’ daughters. He had allegedly dropped out of school to work, and so that Taylor could have the means to finish school herself. That being said, the jury will ultimately decide his fate.
The sketch
An artist’s sketch of the suspected killer apparently doesn’t even match the description of the killer. After showing the image to the jury panel, he told them that “it’s not the same guy.” However, with Moore’s confession, it’s difficult to side in Moore’s defense.
The defense
There is a shred of evidence that the crime was actually not exactly as it seemed. According to defense attorney, Calvin Schneider III, believes that, despite Moore’s confession, Taylor’s murder was actually performed by someone with a “gang-related motive.”
From the killer’s mouth
After admitting to the murder, Moore told the court that Smyer believed Taylor was doing all that she could to keep Smyer involved in the baby’s life. He had said that she was adamant he pay child support. This is what sent him over the edge, allegedly.
Connecting the dots
Williamson’s attack was not the last of its, though she was luckily able to survive in both circumstances. During another pregnancy, Williamson was attacked not long after Taylor’s death. Though the baby turned out fine, the attacker had punched her roughly 30 times in the stomach.
Dark coincidences
In 1998, the mother of Smyer’s two daughters, Traci Williamson, was attacked in an alley a man wielding a knife. Though she and the baby both survived, it draws an unsettling pattern between the two incidences. Either Smyer was involved in both attacks — or it’s all just a very strange coincidence.
A pattern
There are telltale signs that point to Smyer’s connection to the murder. Aside from his dispute with Taylor over getting an abortion and the issue of child support, he was actually involved in a very similar incident just three priors to Taylor’s murder.
Fate
If Smyer is found guilty of the crimes, he faces life in prison. The charges that he’s facing are “two counts of solicitation of murder and one count of conspiracy,” and he’ll have zero chance at parole.
A decade later
It took ten years for the police to finally charge Smyer with two counts of murder (Taylor and the baby, Jeremiah). Now, the courts are trying to decide whether or not Smyer was directly related to the murder (which he claims he was not) or if Taylor’s murder was purely coincidental.
Following through
On September 25th, 2001, Skyler Jefferson Moore murdered Crystal Taylor by shooting her in the head. Neither she or the baby survived. As of now, Moore is serving a life sentence in prison without the possibility of parole. Now, however, Smyer has been added into the mix.
Planning the murder
According to the prosecution, Smyer had no intention of paying child support — so much so that he would rather kill Taylor and their unborn son. To pull this off, he sought out the help of someone who’d be willing to commit the crime. This man was Skyler Jefferson Moore.
Keeping the baby
Despite his request, an abortion was out of the question. Already the mother of a ten-year-old boy, Taylor had already chosen a name for her future son. She was planning on naming him Jeremiah, and she had no intention of getting rid of her baby.