Tragic Crime Scene: Man Fatally Stabs Neighbor 61 Times, Leaving Devastating Discovery for Her Father

An Indiana man, aged 53, has been sentenced to spend many years behind bars for the brutal murder of his neighbor. He fatally stabbed her 61 times within her residence, leaving her father to discover the horrific scene.

On Friday, Marion County Superior Judge James K. Snyder handed Dana Jermaine Shepherd a 45-year prison sentence for the 1993 murder of 19-year-old Carmen Van Huss, according to court documents.

“Though no amount of time can mend the deep wounds left by Carmen’s tragic loss, we are relieved to have secured a murder conviction after more than three decades,” stated Prosecutor Ryan Mears following the sentencing, as reported by Indianapolis NBC affiliate WTHR. “We hope this outcome provides some semblance of justice and tranquility to her family, who have waited 30 long years for closure.”

Last month, Shepherd entered a plea agreement with the prosecution, admitting guilt to a murder charge. Consequently, prosecutors dismissed an additional charge of rape involving a weapon and lethal force.

On March 22, 1993, Van Huss visited her grandmother in the hospital, then dropped off her father and 3-year-old brother at their Indianapolis residence before heading to her apartment on the 8200 block of Harcourt Road, as noted by the Indianapolis Star.

Witnesses told police that at about 11:30 p.m. that evening, they could hear Van Huss and an unidentified man talking and laughing in the apartment. However, about two hours later, one neighbor reportedly said she could hear Van Huss yelling “Get off me!” as well as footsteps rushing from the apartment.

The following day, Van Huss’ manager at a local Pizza Hut called her father after several unsuccessful attempts to contact her. When her father was also unable to contact Van Huss, he went to her apartment and made the grisly discovery.

Deputies with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office responded to the home and reportedly found Van Huss lying naked on the floor of her bedroom in a large pool of blood from dozens of stab wounds to her face, head, and body. There were also signs of a struggle, including clothes and other objects strewn about the home and furniture knocked over.

A subsequent autopsy determined that Van Huss suffered a total of 61 stab wounds and concluded that the manner of death was a homicide.

The victim’s brother, Jimmy Van Huss, previously told local Fox affiliate WXIN that his sister’s murder was particularly heinous.

“We hope after all this time people understand how violent my sister’s murder was,” Jimmy Van Huss told the station in 2024. “She was raped and stabbed over 60 times. My dad had to see that, blood everywhere, his daughter naked, lying there. He had to see that. That changed him forever.”

DNA evidence from the scene was collected at the time, but it was not until an analysis company in 2023 identified Shepherd as a possible person of interest in the case that the case was able to move forward, the Star reported. Detectives soon learned that a then-21-year-old Shepherd lived in the same building as Van Huss at the time of the murder.

Shepherd was reportedly working as a janitor in Columbia, Missouri, in 2024 when detectives obtained a DNA sample from him. The sample was tested against the DNA from the scene and came back as a match. He was taken into custody in Missouri in August 2024 and extradited back to Indiana about three months later.

The Van Huss family released a statement to WXIN following Friday’s hearing.

“While this plea deal was not our first choice, we are grateful that after 33 years the man responsible for Carmen’s brutal rape and murder is finally being held accountable,” the family said. “For decades, the perpetrator was able to live a normal life after taking that right away from Carmen and from our family. Nothing can undo that loss or erase the injustice of him living freely for so long, but we are thankful that the truth has finally come to light and that he has not escaped justice.”