Tragedy struck the quiet waters of Drakes Creek in Hendersonville where, according to the Hendersonville Police Department, 33-year-old Brandi Elliott has been charged with the heartbreaking murder of her 7-year-old daughter on Saturday, July 13. WKRN reports that police were alerted to an apparent drowning in the creek near Sanders Ferry Road, where investigators later determined that Elliott was responsible for her child’s demise.
A shocking account of the incident unfolded as Elliot took her daughter Piper to visit her father in the hospital. During the visit, Piper occupied herself with coloring, and to an outsider, everything seemed to mirror a normal family outing. Yet, just two hours later, Piper was deceased. According to a friend of Elliot’s, DeAnna Sartain, who knew the young girl as always smiling and "vivacious," NewsChannel 5 shared statements from Sartain expressing disbelief and loss. "It’s not like the Brandi we knew," she said, pondering over the incomprehensibility of Elliot's actions, with no significant warning signals to foretell the tragedy.
Elliott's purported reasoning behind the grim act was wanting time alone after a "rough day," leading to her submerging her daughter underwater tragically, comparing her grip to holding "like a large mouth bass," as she demanded quiet from her daughter whilst committing the act. This disclosure came from police statements that Elliott herself confessed to the act and unsuccessfully attempted CPR on her daughter after realizing what she had done, as reported by Law&Crime.
Brandi Elliott is currently being held in Sumner County Jail without bond. Her next court appearance is set for Friday for a bond hearing. The community is still in shock over the crime, which seems so out of character for Elliott according to her friends, like DeAnna Sartain. Elliott's fate now rests in the hands of the judiciary. Those who knew Piper are mourning her untimely death, with the pain palpable and the question 'why' remaining unanswered.
