A Tennessee man has gone on trial accused of murdering his girlfriend and then throwing their two-year-old daughter into a river infested with alligators. Brandon Isabelle, 28, allegedly shot 27-year-old Danielle Hoyle in the head before driving to Mud Island and hurling the toddler, Kennedy, into the Mississippi River in February 2022.
Prosecutors say Isabelle lured Hoyle to a meeting in Memphis, where he shot her. Her body was found next to an abandoned vehicle, leading to Isabelle's arrest. In a video confession played in court last month, Isabelle reportedly admitted to the killing and said he threw Kennedy into the water because he 'did not want her'.
Isabelle has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse and neglect, and aggravated kidnapping. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. State prosecutor Dru Carpenter alleged in opening statements that Isabelle was seeing another woman and wanted to be with her, and that he met this woman at Mud Island before the murders.
The trial continues, with prosecutors saying they have DNA, video and testimonial evidence. On the second day, Hoyle's mother, April Campbell, testified that she disapproved of her daughter's relationship with Isabelle, warning her about his treatment of his wife.
