LANCASTER, CA – Two young siblings lost their lives under harrowing circumstances, and the details revealed in a Los Angeles County courtroom this week have placed the focus squarely on the innocent victims of a terrible tragedy.
Maurice Taylor Jr., 12, and Maliaka Taylor, 13, were found dead inside their family’s Lancaster home in late 2020. Evidence presented at trial showed they suffered unimaginable violence at the hands of their own parents—Maurice Jewel Taylor Sr. and Natalie Sumiko Brothwell. On Tuesday, a jury convicted both parents of first-degree murder with special circumstances, as well as two counts of felony child abuse.
Investigators said the children’s final days were marked by brutality. Authorities reported that Taylor Sr. used a knife to fatally stab his eldest son and daughter in separate bedrooms. The parents then forced their two younger sons, who were only 8 and 9 at the time, to view the bodies of their siblings. The surviving boys were later locked in their rooms and deprived of food for days.
The horror inside the Taylor residence did not come to light until concerned clients of Taylor Sr., who was a personal trainer, requested a welfare check. The clients had grown increasingly anxious after Taylor failed to respond to messages and missed scheduled online sessions. When deputies arrived, they discovered the grisly scene and took both children’s parents into custody.
Authorities described the conditions the siblings endured as both gruesome and tragic. The bodies of Maurice Jr. and Maliaka bore evidence of multiple stab wounds and lacerations. The ordeal left the two younger brothers traumatized, having been forced to witness and endure the aftermath of the fatal assaults.
Brothwell was present in the home when deputies responded, but was not immediately arrested. Investigators later determined her involvement and took her into custody almost a year afterward. Throughout the investigation and trial, prosecutors highlighted the “monstrous act of cruelty” inflicted on the children.
Following the conviction, officials emphasized that the verdict brings a measure of justice for Maurice Jr. and Maliaka, whose lives were cut short before they could fully experience childhood. The surviving children remain in the care of authorities, as the community grapples with the shock and sorrow surrounding the case.
Taylor Sr. and Brothwell are scheduled to be sentenced on January 13. Both face potential life sentences without the possibility of parole. The trial and subsequent convictions ensure the voices of Maurice Jr. and Maliaka will not be forgotten, underscoring the lasting impact of the tragedy on those left behind.