The parents of a son and daughter who were decapitated in California in late 2020 have pleaded not guilty to murder and child abuse charges.
Daughter Maliaka Taylor, 13, and son Maurice Taylor Jr., 12, were found decapitated at the family’s Lancaster home, located in the Mojave Desert about 70 miles north of downtown Los Angeles.
The children’s father, Maurice Jewel Taylor Sr., now 35, was charged in December 2020 with two felony counts each of murder, and child abuse of his two other boys, prosecutors said. Taylor allegedly stabbed the two older children on Nov. 29, 2020 and showed their bodies to the two younger boys, ages 8 and 9, who he forced to stay in their bedrooms for several days without food.
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The children’s bodies weren’t found by authorities until five days later, according to Deputy Eric Ortiz of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
Taylor worked at a physical therapy center in Santa Monica but had been conducting training sessions online during the coronavirus pandemic. Some of his clients contacted authorities after he failed to show up for scheduled appointments, leading to the discovery of the victims.
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The children’s mother, Natalie Sumiko Brothwell, now 45, was arrested last September at her home in Tucson, Ariz. She faces the same counts as Taylor.
Natalie Brothwell, 44, was charged this week in the deaths of her two children. (Pima County Sheriff’s Department)
Taylor and Brothwell’s not guilty pleas were made in court Wednesday, according to FOX 11 Los Angeles.
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Taylor faces 57 years and four months to life in prison if convicted as charged. It’s not clear if Brothwell faces the same sentence.
Taylor and Brothwell each remain in jail with a bail of $4.2 million set. They are both due back in court Feb. 15.
The Associated Press and Fox News’ David Aaro contributed to this report.
