Blanche arrested July 18, 1989
Blanche Taylor Moore was arrested on July 18, 1989, charged with 2 counts of first-degree murder and 1 count of assault with a deadly weapon.
Snapshot · Morbid
Blanche Taylor Moore, The Oldest Woman on Death Row (Part 2)
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Jul 2, 2026
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Exhumations Confirm a Pattern of Arsenic Poisoning
At 1:00:30 · chapter starts 58:40
With a court warrant, investigators exhume Raymond Reed's body from Pine Hill Cemetery and find arsenic distributed through six organs — liver, brain, kidneys, muscles, bones, and stomach — at levels the medical examiner describes as within the range of potential lethality. [1] — Ash Kelley "Investigators got a warrant to dig up Raymond Reed's body from Pine Hill Cemetery, and the results were damning: arsenic in his liver, brai…" 58:40 A superior court judge orders the exhumation of James Taylor's body next, and the results are similarly damning: elevated arsenic and a medical examiner's conclusion that Taylor died from arsenic poisoning, not the heart disease that had been cited at the time of his death. [2] — Ash Kelley "James Taylor died of arsenic poisoning: The medical examiner concluded that Blanche's husband James Taylor died as a result of arsenic pois…" 59:38 The bodies of Blanche's father P.D. Kaiser and her former mother-in-law are also exhumed; both show elevated arsenic but not at provably lethal levels. On July 18, 1989, Blanche Taylor Moore is arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of assault with a deadly weapon.
Raymond Reed's Body Is Exhumed
Investigators got a warrant to dig up Raymond Reed's body from Pine Hill Cemetery, and the results were damning: arsenic in his liver, brain, kidneys, muscles, bones, and stomach — at levels the medical examiner described as within the range of potential lethality. Blanche's past had literally been unearthed.
Arsenic in Raymond Reed's exhumed body
When Raymond Reed's body was exhumed from Pine Hill Cemetery, the medical examiner found arsenic in his liver, brain, kidneys, muscles, bones, and stomach at levels within the range of potential lethality.
James Taylor died of arsenic poisoning
The medical examiner concluded that Blanche's husband James Taylor died as a result of arsenic poisoning, despite his known underlying heart disease previously being cited as the cause.
The Arrest: A Shock to the Community
Blanche's arrest on July 18, 1989 sent shockwaves through her community. Neighbors described her as a sweet, devout Christian woman. Her own daughter flatly rejected the accusations. But those who knew Blanche closely had already started to notice she lied about everything — they just couldn't say what was and wasn't true.
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