INDIANAPOLIS, IN - A judge has sentenced a man convicted of killing an Indianapolis woman more than three decades ago. Last month, Dana Shepard pleaded guilty to murdering 19-year-old Carmen Van Huss, and as part of the plea deal, one count of murder and one count of rape were dismissed.
The judge accepted the guilty plea and sentenced Shepard to 45 years in prison, WTHR reported. However, under the sentencing guidelines that were in effect in 1993, Shepard is required to serve 50 percent of that sentence, 22.5 years.
"While no passage of time can ever heal the unimaginable loss Carmen’s family has endured, we are grateful to secure a Murder conviction more than 30 years after this heinous crime. We hope that this resolution brings a measure of justice and peace to her loved ones, after three decades of waiting for answers," Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears said in a statement.
Police credited advancements in DNA testing and the use of information from genealogy databases, leading investigators to Shepard.
On March 24, 1993, Van Huss was found raped and murdered in her north Indianapolis apartment in the 8200 block of Harcourt Road, near West 79th Street and Ditch Road. Her father called 911 after he found her dead on the floor of her apartment.
According to court documents, one of Van Huss's co-workers at a local Pizza Hut called her father after she didn't show up for work. The father told detectives he tried calling her multiple times but never got a response, so he drove to her apartment to check on her.
Court documents state that when he showed up at his daughter's apartment, he said the front door was unlocked. He went inside and found his daughter dead on the floor. Detectives said Van Huss was found naked, and there were obvious signs of a struggle at the scene, including a knocked-over table, clothes thrown on the floor, a large pool of blood near her head, and blood splatter around her body.
Detectives reported that Van Huss had multiple puncture wounds to her head, face, and body. The Marion County Coroner's Office determined Van Huss's cause of death was from stab wounds to the head and ruled her manner of death a homicide. The coroner's office said she had 61 stab wounds on her body.
Shepard was Van Huss's neighbor at the time of the murder. He was arrested in 2024 in Boone County, Missouri, where he was reportedly working as a custodian at the University of Missouri. He was extradited to Indiana in November 2024.
Initially, Shepard was facing two counts of murder and one count of rape, with a maximum sentence of 105 years.
"She was taken from me when I was a freshman in high school, and I'm glad the man who did it is where he belongs," said Van Huss's brother, Jimmy, at the time of Shepard's arrest.
The judge accepted the guilty plea and sentenced Shepard to 45 years in prison, WTHR reported. However, under the sentencing guidelines that were in effect in 1993, Shepard is required to serve 50 percent of that sentence, 22.5 years.
"While no passage of time can ever heal the unimaginable loss Carmen’s family has endured, we are grateful to secure a Murder conviction more than 30 years after this heinous crime. We hope that this resolution brings a measure of justice and peace to her loved ones, after three decades of waiting for answers," Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears said in a statement.
Police credited advancements in DNA testing and the use of information from genealogy databases, leading investigators to Shepard.
On March 24, 1993, Van Huss was found raped and murdered in her north Indianapolis apartment in the 8200 block of Harcourt Road, near West 79th Street and Ditch Road. Her father called 911 after he found her dead on the floor of her apartment.
According to court documents, one of Van Huss's co-workers at a local Pizza Hut called her father after she didn't show up for work. The father told detectives he tried calling her multiple times but never got a response, so he drove to her apartment to check on her.
Court documents state that when he showed up at his daughter's apartment, he said the front door was unlocked. He went inside and found his daughter dead on the floor. Detectives said Van Huss was found naked, and there were obvious signs of a struggle at the scene, including a knocked-over table, clothes thrown on the floor, a large pool of blood near her head, and blood splatter around her body.
Detectives reported that Van Huss had multiple puncture wounds to her head, face, and body. The Marion County Coroner's Office determined Van Huss's cause of death was from stab wounds to the head and ruled her manner of death a homicide. The coroner's office said she had 61 stab wounds on her body.
Shepard was Van Huss's neighbor at the time of the murder. He was arrested in 2024 in Boone County, Missouri, where he was reportedly working as a custodian at the University of Missouri. He was extradited to Indiana in November 2024.
Initially, Shepard was facing two counts of murder and one count of rape, with a maximum sentence of 105 years.
"She was taken from me when I was a freshman in high school, and I'm glad the man who did it is where he belongs," said Van Huss's brother, Jimmy, at the time of Shepard's arrest.
For corrections or revisions, click here.
The opinions reflected in this article are not necessarily the opinions of LET
Comments