Did a Ga. Mom with Alleged 'Polygamist Cult Lifestyle' Brutally Stab Her Daughter So She Could Be with Husband?

A woman is on trial in Georgia in connection with the 2020 fatal stabbing of her 13-month-old daughter, which prosecutors allege in court she carried out to be with her “polygamist cult” husband. 

Authorities found Hannah Nicole Driver with stab wounds in the bedroom of a Cherokee County, Ga., home on Dec. 8, 2020, the Canton Police Department said at the time. She died after being transported to a local hospital. 

The child’s mother, Chloe Alexis Driver, was also found with “life-threatening injuries” and later charged with several offenses including murder with malice and cruelty to children, per police. 

Chloe was arrested after she was discharged from the hospital. 

Nearly four years later, Chloe, who was 20 at the time of the killing, is standing trial on the murder charge in a Cherokee County courtroom, as live-streamed on Court TV.  

Prosecutors alleged in opening arguments on Tuesday, Nov. 12, that Chloe was the wife of a “polygamist” and killed her child to be with him. The man faces no charges in connection with the girl’s death.

Chief Assistant District Attorney Katie Gropper said in court that Chloe was part of an “alternative lifestyle” where she was married to a man who also had two other wives.

The “polygamist group,” Gropper alleged in court, had “radical views” and “alternative” healing practices that included “drinking their own urine.”

She accused Chloe of killing Hannah because she wanted to be with the man, who was Hannah’s father. 

A letter allegedly written by Chloe that was shared in court reads, “He didn’t do it. I did it. I was going insane and no longer wanted to be with his friends but kept coming back for him. I only wanted my baby and husband but he refused.”

Explaining the alleged motive, Gropper said, “She wanted to be with him and he was never going to give up his polygamist cult lifestyle that they had adopted.”

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In order to satisfy this motive, Chloe allegedly locked herself and Hannah in a room and stabbed the child and herself on that December day, prosecutors alleged in court. The mother and daughter were found by Hannah’s father, who allegedly let out a “blood-curdling scream” asking Chloe, “What did you do,” Gropper said in court.

As the trial proceeded, the court heard gruesome details of the case, such as Hannah’s state when she was brought into the hospital after the attack.

Dr. Carli Blomquist, an emergency room physician who tended to Hannah, told the court the child was “empty of blood” after she was brought in.

The charges against Chloe are: malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault and cruelty to children, according to Cherokee County online court records.

Chloe has entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity, per those records.

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.