State seeks 20 years for man accused of killing woman after Children Services report

The state asked a judge to sentence Taylor to 20 years, saying that anything less would demean the seriousness of the crimes and would not adequately punish him or protect the public.

In the sentencing memorandum filed by prosecutors Friday, they say that on Dec. 28, 2018, Ronda Neal filed a report with Montgomery County Children Services regarding a possible incident involving a child and Taylor.

“The relationship between Ms. Neal and defendant had been getting increasingly volatile leading up to December 2018. Ms. Neal had been increasingly scared that defendant was going to physically attack her. That fear came true in a terrifying and ultimately deadly way,” prosecutors said in the court document.

The memorandum says that Neal had a friend spend the day with her because she was scared, and at around 8 p.m. they decided to take Neal’s vehicle to go get dinner. When they got inside, “that’s when the terror began.”

“Defendant had been lying in wait in the back of Ms. Neal’s van and seized upon his opportunity as soon as he could. Armed with a knife, he began stabbing Ms. Neal first. Ms. Neal suffered multiple stab wounds, including one to the left side of her neck,” the memorandum says.

Taylor then started attacking the friend, the court document says, and she, too, suffered several stab wounds. Both women were taken to the hospital and received medical treatment. Prosecutors said that Neal died of her injuries several months later.

The state said that Taylor tried to evade police by shaving his head. He eventually was arrested after several days, prosecutors said.

“The defendant learned that Ms. Neal had called Children Services on him. He decided to exact revenge for that call by hiding in Ms. Neal’s van for who knows how long. He laid in wait in the back under the cover of darkness as she and her unsuspecting friend got inside. He attacked them from behind, in a situation when neither one of them had any opportunity to protect themselves,” the memorandum says.

Prosecutors said that Neal was a mother and grandmother and family members continue to mourn her death.

A defense memorandum wasn’t filed by Wednesday afternoon, but attorney Ben Swift previously released a statement to the Dayton Daily News.

“Mr. Taylor wanted to bring closure to this matter for the victim’s families and ensure that he would be released from prison instead of being subjected to a possible life sentence. This plea assures that he will be released in the future,” Swift said.