Three more hours later, they took her to another . Sharer moved to New Albany with her mother in 1991 and developed a romantic relationship with Amanda Heavrin, a 15-year-old she met at school. "They're going to have that.". She got into fights at school and reported being depressed, resulting in her receiving professional counseling. Date of birth: 6 June 1979. Shanda Sharer was born in the Pineville Community Hospital in Pineville, Kentucky, on June 6, 1979, to Stephen Sharer and his wife Jacqueline, who was later known as Jacqueline Vaught. They drove towards Utica and the Witch's Castle. For hours, they tortured a barely conscious Sharer by assaulting her with a tire iron before ultimately taking her to a field and burning her alive. Slaughter 35,000 Civilians During One Korean War Massacre Or Is It North Korean Propaganda? The crime was documented in two true crime books, Little Lost Angel by Michael Quinlan[30] and Cruel Sacrifice by Aphrodite Jones;[64] Jones's book on the case became a New York Times Bestseller. "I was the monster. Sharer told the girls to return after her parents were asleep, which they did. A small memorial to Shanda Sharer in the field where she died. Shanda Sharer's mother and murderer form unlikely alliance, 1 dead in crash on I-264 West in Brownsboro Road area; all lanes reopened, 18-year-old killed in west Louisville hit-and run identified; police searching for suspect, PREVIOUS STORY: Judge denies Loveless' request for earlyrelease in torture-killing. -- The two bird hunters who found the body of 12-year-old Shanda Renee Sharer on that cold, sunny morning in January, said it looked at . Shanda Renee Sharer (19791992) was a young girl who was tortured and burned to death in Madison, Indiana by four teenage girls. In 1991, Shanda Sharer was a bubbly 12-year-old attending Hazelwood Middle School in New Albany, Ind. "We bring our challenges, many times, to Melinda because she's able to figure out what their strength is," said Sally Irvin of ICAN. [62] By November 2018 Shanda's mother Jacque Vaught stated that the scholarship fund had been depleted and is no longer accepting donations. The three other girls assumed Loveless was simply going to scare Sharer into breaking up with Heavrin. When they returned to Tacketts house, she laughingly described what had just happened to Rippey. [58] After serving 26+ years in prison, she will serve parole in Jefferson County, Kentucky. Loveless and Tackett made Sharer strip down to her underwear; then, Loveless beat Sharer with her fists. Shanda Rene Sharer (June 6, 1979 - January 11, 1992) was an American girl who was murdered by a group of girls in early 1992. Court testimony showed Loveless wanted Sharer killed because the two competed for the affections of the same girl. Clockwise from top left: Melinda Loveless, Laurie Tackett, Hope Rippey, and Toni Lawrence. On the morning of Saturday, January 11, 1992, Canaan, Ind., resident Donn Foley and his brother Ralph were quail hunting in nearby Jefferson County when they spotted a strange object in a fallow soybean field near Lemon Road. Tackett let Rippey drive the four girls to Jeffersonville, where Sharer stayed with her father on the weekends, stopping at a McDonald's restaurant en route to ask for directions. I would thank her. She had been stabbed, strangled, beaten and burned alive. At that point, Amanda was in an on-and-off relationship with another teenager, Melinda Loveless. She was sincere. Her parents resumed their relationship in Madison in 1987. [7], Mary Laurine "Laurie" Tackett was born in Madison, Indiana, on October 5, 1974. She was sentenced to 60 years for murder. [3] When her mother divorced again, the family moved in June 1991 to New Albany, Indiana, and Sharer enrolled at Hazelwood Middle School. "Ididn't know Shanda at all. Tackett was released in 2018, and served probation for one year. Everyone involved had been sworn to secrecy. Tacketts motives aside, what would drive 16-year-old Loveless to mastermind such a brutal murder? [10], The extent of Larry's abuse of his daughters and other children is unclear. She was released on December 14, 2000 after serving nine years in prison. When they pulled up in front of her house, Loveless kissed Heavrin, told her she loved her and pleaded with her not to tell anyone. Then, discover the story of teenage serial killer Harvey Robinson. [15] Tackett began to engage in self-harm, especially after early 1991 when she began dating a girl who was involved in the practice. Instead, Loveless would be eligible for parole in 15 years, thus maintaining the original guilty plea. Heavrin promised she would not before entering her house. Her family has long suspected that her killer is someone she knew, but they have never been able to prove it. She remained on supervised parole for 5 years until April 2011. In the back seat, Melinda Loveless was hiding under a blanket with a knife. It was a crime of passion and peer pressure committed by four teenage girls. Lawrence refused. The killers looked no different than girls I knew in school who walked around, wreaking havoc and completely out of control. She even showed Amanda the bloody trunk and Shanda's bloody clothes. Shanda endured hell and was later put in the trunk of the car, only in her underwear. In 2012, Jacque Vaught made her first contact with Melinda Loveless since the trials, although indirectly. Tackett made Rippey pour the gasoline on Sharer, and then they set her on fire. They arrived at Sharer's house shortly before dark. Her death is notable due to the torture she endured for more than 10 hours, and subsequently being burned alive. Various court testimonies claimed he fondled Melinda as an infant, molested Marjorie's 13-year-old sister early in the marriage, and molested the girls' cousin Teddy from age 10 to 14. Her parents, Stephen Sharer and Jacqueline Vaught got divorced when Shanda was very young. "She was compassionate. Loveless instructed Rippey and Lawrence to go to the door and introduce themselves as friends of Heavrin (Loveless's former and Sharer's current girlfriend), then invite Sharer to come with them to see Heavrin, who was waiting for them at "the Witch's Castle", or Mistletoe Falls, a ruined stone house located on an isolated hill overlooking the Ohio River. He received a sentence of time served and was released in June 1995. "If you don't let good things come from bad things, nothing gets better. Ralph's first thought was that the object was a body, though logic dictated that it were something else. Sharer moved to New Albany with her. In January 1992, a horrifying discovery out in a field near Madison, Indiana, led the authorities on a shocking inquiry that ultimately led to the conviction of four teenagers. 'Wow.'". She was prescribed an anti-depressant and released. The Shanda Sharer Murder has forever changed my life. Shes my child. Shanda Sharer. Derek Kaufman bids his mother Joan Esposito farewell as he kisses her hand in court after his sentencing. In May 1989, her mother discovered that Tackett was changing from a dress into jeans at school, and, after a confrontation that night, attempted to strangle her. Furthermore, Melinda had a rough childhood, with her father being accused of sexual abuse. People were even more shocked when it was revealed that four teenage girls were responsible for the brutal murder. Authorities quickly narrowed in on the killers four teenage girls, three of whom had never met the victim until . Loveless served more than 26 years in prison for murder and criminal confinement. She was sentenced to 60 years in prison but has served the required time for her release. She began attending Hazelwood Junior High School where she met Amanda Heavrin, 15, and developed a romantic interest in her. Investigation Discovery's ' The 1990s: The Deadliest Decade: The New Girl' chronicles what happened to Shanda and how four girls were responsible for her death. [20] Her father was an engineer at a power plant. Toni pleaded guilty to criminal confinement and received a 20-year sentence due to her cooperation. There, Loveless taunted that she had pretty hair and wondered how pretty she would look if they were to cut it off, which frightened Sharer even more. Tackett beat her with a tire iron until she was silent, claiming that she felt the victim's head caving in, and then told Loveless to "smell it". At a remote trash dump in a densely overgrown area, Loveless and her gang stripped the clothes from Sharer's body, punched her repeatedly, sprayed window cleaner into her eyes. While Tackett went inside to ask for directions, Lawrence called a boy she knew in Louisville and chatted for several minutes to ease her worries, but did not mention Sharer's abduction. She had since reportedly married her girlfriend and seems to live in Indiana. Phil." They then strangled Sharer with a rope until she was unconscious, placed her in the trunk of the car, and told the other two girls that Sharer was dead. She was 12 years old at the time of her death. The girls, who were all between the ages of 15 and 17, lured Shanda out of her home in the middle of the night and took her on a drive around southern Indiana. Loveless then threatened Sharer in public and soon even talked about killing the 12-year-old. The girls used the pretense that they were taking Sharer to see Heavrin as the excuse for their visit. [68], "Mean", an episode from the fifth season of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, is based on the murder. In November, 1988, Minato (then using the first name Nobuharu) and Hiroshi Miyano (now using the surname Yokoyama), worked together to abduct Junko Furuta as she commuted home from a part-time job. Larry and Marjorie gave full confession and renounced drinking and swinging while they were members. That torture wasnt enough to satiate the older girls. Shanda was born in Pineville, Kentucky on the 6th of June 1979. She helped me to heal, forgive and grow, whether she wanted that or not. Tackett told people in one interview that, I didnt know Shanda at all. They both gave very rambling statements, identifying the victim as "Shanda", naming the two other girls involved as best as they could, and describing the main events of the previous night. If you dont let good things come from bad things nothing gets better. A sleepy Indiana town awoke one chilly morning in the winter of 1992 to discover the lifeless body of 12-year-old Shanda Sharer in an open field. She was close friends with Rippey from childhood. 28 Pins 4y K Collection by Kim Hickey Similar ideas popular now True Crime Books Mens Skin Care Country Music Pure Products Youtube Books Quick Libros Book Book Illustrations Facts About People I saw someone almost reborn. Jacque said she still has no plans to meet face-to-face with her daughter's killers. April 25, 2016. I couldn't thank her enough. Four teenage girls lured 12-year-old Shanda Sharer to the witch's castle at midnight on the pretense that another friend was in desperate trouble. Loveless was not convinced Sharer was dead, so they returned a few minutes later to pour the rest of the gasoline on her. So, lets find out more about this case then, shall we. She dropped out of high school in September 1991. As the year progressed, Loveless's relationship with Heavrin deteriorated. She will now serve parole in Jefferson County, Kentucky, according to the Kentucky Department of Corrections. January 1992- New Albany, Indiana- 12 year old Shanda Sharer is abducted, tortured and killed by 4 teenage girls.I feel like I have done a huge disservice to Shanda and her family. One of the dog breeders who supplies Indiana with pups is a burn victim, much like Shanda Sharer was. Larry remained in prison for over two years awaiting trial; however, a judge eventually ruled that all charges except one count of sexual battery had to be dropped due to the statute of limitations, which was five years in Indiana. Finally, in the early morning hours, the torturers stopped at a gas station and bought a two-liter bottle of Pepsi, which they quickly emptied and refilled with gasoline. Thereafter, Minato and Miyano, then aged 15 and 18, respectively, and two other youths took her to a residence in the Ayase area of Adachi Ward . Her mother was a fundamentalist Pentecostal Christian and her father was a factory worker with two felony convictions in the 1960s. In a new twist to the case, police have now arrested a man named Johnny Lee Sharer for . There were also reports of the victim being sexually assaulted with the same weapon. Loveless was released from Indiana Women's Prison on September 5, 2019. He would also "share" her with some of his friends from work, which she found disgusting. During her sentencing hearingin 1993, Tackettconceded that she let opportunities to save Sharer's life slip awayand that she was too afraid to stop it. Larry became a marriage counselor with the church and acquired a reputation for being too forward with women, eventually attempting to rape one of them. The film also has three interviews with Loveless. Tackett and Loveless were sentenced to 60 years in the Indiana Women's Prison in Indianapolis. Sharer was tortured, beaten and burned in a rural area of Jefferson County, Indiana. Hope was released on parole in April 2006. Shanda would start attending Hazelwood Middle School and was quickly making friends. Veteran journalist and host of Investigation Discovery's "True Crime with Aphrodite Jones", Jones reveals the shocking truth behind the most savage crime in Indiana history-the torture, mutilation, and murder of 12-year-old Shanda Sharer by four teenage girls. Melinda Loveless, now 43, left the Indiana Women's Prison in Indianapolis after serving nearly 24 years of a 60-year sentence for the brutal murder of 12-year-old Shanda Sharer in 1992. As the four girls ate breakfast at McDonalds just after the killing, the four girls laughed as they compared their sausage breakfast to Shanda Sharers burnt corpse. Co-defendants Laurie Tackett, Toni Lawrence and Hope Rippey were earlier released from prison. Sharer said that she could not go because her parents were awake, and she told the girls to come back around midnight, a few hours later. Melinda was released in September 2019, and while in prison, she trained service dogs for those living with trauma and disabilities. Lastly, Loveless was released from Indiana Women's Prison on September 5, 2019. Published on May 20, 2011. By the next day, all four girls were in custody. She said her goal is to make Shanda proud of her, and she believes Angel would do that. Larry was verbally abusive to his daughters and fired a handgun in the direction of Melinda's older sister Michelle when she was seven, intentionally missing her. Hope was handed down a 40-year sentence for her involvement, and she was supposed to serve 17-and-a-half years of it behind bars. The Abduction. but the best I can do is admit to my mistake. "I liked it because it wasn't planned," said Loveless. The Shanda Sharer Scholarship Fund was established in January 2009. Loveless ordered Sharer to slip off her bra, which she then handed over to Rippey, who slid off her own bra and replaced it with Sharer's while steering the car. Shanda Sharer. They called the police at 10:55a.m. and were asked to return to the corpse. (Sun. She was reunited with friends Tackett and Toni Lawrence, whom she had known since childhood, although her parents saw Tackett as a bad influence. [13] Tackett and her mother came into periodic conflict; at one point, her mother went to Hope Rippey's house after learning that Rippey's father had purchased an ouija board for the girls. He would also embarrass his children by finding their underwear and smelling it in front of other family members. Court testimony indicates that the four girls lured Sharer from her home the night of Jan. 10, 1992, on the pretense that she was being taken to meet her new girlfriend. Died: 11 January 1992. [75], American artist Marlene McCarty used the Shanda Sharer murder as one of the subjects for her Murder Girls series of drawings about teenage female murderers, their sexuality and their relationships. Both older girls said he molested them, though Melinda did not admit this ever happened to her. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. The whole thing happened around the jealousy stemming from lesbian relationships. [4] Early in the school year, she transferred to Our Lady of Perpetual Help School, a Catholic school in New Albany, where she joined the girls' basketball team. "I had many times said, "If you want to see as close to a person that has absolutely nothing inside of them, look into Melinda's eyes 'cause there's nothing there,'" Vaught said. Lawrence was released from prison in 2000, and Rippey was released in 2006. Shanda was born in Pineville, Kentucky on June 6th, 1979 to Stephen Sharer and his wife Jacqueline, who was later known as Jacqueline Vaught. She remained on parole until December 2002. [PREVIOUS STORY: Judge denies Loveless' request for earlyrelease in torture-killing]. MurderpediaClockwise from top left: Melinda Loveless, Laurie Tackett, Hope Rippey, and Toni Lawrence. primary and secondary emotions chart; dr baig st thomas hospital; equation of elastic curve of a beam; bath and body works lavender shower gel Then they lit Shanda Sharer on fire and drove off. The four girls abducted Sharer from her house at midnight on the pretext of driving her to meet Amanda in an abandoned building, where they tied her up and taunted her. In October of that year, the pair attended a school dance together. Jacqueline made her daughter switch schools, and that seemed to work. Tackett poured out the Pepsi and refilled the bottle with gasoline. Melinda Loveless has a new lease on life as a trainer of service dogs for the disabled. Heavrin was horrified and asked to be taken home. Loveless is the last of the four to be released from prison. At this point, Sharers mother transferred her to Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic School in order to protect her. Washington, Vine Grove man accused of trying to kill a police officer, Baxter Avenue Theatres in the Highlands reopens after brief closure due to water main break, Crestwood man facing more than 100 child pornography charges, Prospect sues to stop low-income apartment development, Construction progressing for outdoor game yard at riverfront near downtown Louisville, 1 killed in collision with semi tractor-trailer on I-264 near Brownsboro Road early Tuesday, Kentucky's largest accounting, advisory firm relocating downtown Louisville office to PNC Tower, WDRB FCC Applications & Related Materials. ", "Judge denies Loveless' request for early release in torture-killing", "Woman convicted in 1992 murder released from prison", "Mastermind behind brutal murder of Indiana girl in 1992 released from prison", "New Albany memorial focuses on Shanda, not her murder", "Shanda Sharer's mother and murderer form unlikely alliance", "In Cold Blood: A Daughter's Brutal Murder", "Watch Jealousy Full Episode - Killer Kids | Lifetime", "Sex and Death: Interview with Marlene McCarty", "MOCA Collection: Marlene McCarty: 20002001: Melinda Loveless, Toni Lawrence, Hope Rippey, Laurie Tackett, and Shanda Sharer January 11, 1992 (1:39 am)", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Murder_of_Shanda_Sharer&oldid=1133311329, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using embedded infobox templates with the title parameter, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Body of Shanda Sharer found in rural Jefferson County, Indiana, Loveless and Tackett accept plea bargains, A judge reduces Rippey's 60-year sentence to 35 years, This page was last edited on 13 January 2023, at 04:34. She's (Shanda) my child. She was 12 years old at the time of her death. Shanda's parents divorced when she was young, and she ended up . [27], On the night of January 10, 1992, Lawrence (age 15), Rippey (15) and Tackett (17) drove in Tackett's car from Madison to Loveless's house in New Albany. Mary Bell. I didnt go into that evening knowing anything was gonna happen, wanting anything to happen I didnt. Melinda almost immediately found Amanda (the same day Shanda's body was found) and told her the whole story. It was also found that the victim's face and hands were burnt in an attempt to keep her unrecognizable and unidentifiable. Instead, they spent seven hours torturing Shanda, who would later suffer one of the worst deaths in history. However, Jacqueline forbade her daughter from seeing Amanda because of some letters she had written that were sexual in nature. Hours later they took Shanda to another remote location and continued brutalizing her. During the car ride, Sharer continued begging them to take her back home. They became lost, so they stopped at a gas station and covered Sharer in a blanket. Shanda was the kind of girl you wanted to be friends with; she was bubbly, outgoing and a lot of fun. He said that Loveless had been "profoundly retarded" by childhood abuse. They then went to Tacketts house to clean up and drink sodas before realizing that their victim, now screaming in the trunk, was still alive. Witnesses also testified that Tackett, who was obsessed with the occult and the notion of killing someone, had proposed asking Sharer's ghost during a seance how it felt to die by fire, according to IndyStar archives. Rippey and Lawrence, while both friends of Tackett, had not previously met Loveless (16). If the judge accepted these arguments, Loveless could have been retried or released outright. There had been just three other murders in the previous 12 years in the County, and none of them were as gruesome. At the Witch's Castle, they took a sobbing Sharer inside and bound her arms and legs with rope. She then attempted suicide again, and her daughters called authorities. The four girls who took place in the events that occured that night are Melinda Loveless, Laurie Tackett, Hope Rippey and Toni Lawrence. The breeder convinced Vaught to watch a video of Loveless grown up and see what she does in prison for the program. Some of Shanda's friends have put up a wonderful blog that discusses all the many issues surrounding this horrific crime. But 20 years later, something no one expected happened. Lawrence and Rippey were frightened and stayed in the car. It is also to be noted that her body was posed in a suggestive position, very obviously meaning that this was done on purpose and with intention. Small stated that he would seek to have jurisdiction over the case moved to the Indiana Supreme Court. The two. Two other defendants, Toni Lawrence and Hope A. Rippey, were sentenced to 20 years and 50years respectively, according to IndyStar archives. So Jacque Vaught did something remarkable. She convinced three other. Like Mary, Melindas last known location is Indiana. Melinda Loveless, now 43, was released from the Indiana Women's Prison in Indianapolis on Thursday, according to a spokeswoman for the Indiana Department of Correction. The former was released in 2000 after serving nine years while the latter served 14 and got out in 2006. She's like my kid," said Loveless. Next, Loveless repeatedly slammed Sharer's face into her knee, which cut Sharer's mouth on her own braces. Shanda Renee Sharer was born in June 1979 in Pineville, Kentucky. When they arrived at Sharer's house at 12:30a.m., Lawrence refused to retrieve Sharer, so Tackett and Rippey went to the door. Sharer was born on June 6, 1979, in the small town of Pineville, Kentucky, to Steve Sharer and Jackie Vaught. She currently goes by a different name and works for a trucking company based out of Madison. Meanwhile, Tackett and Loveless both received 60-year sentences. Loveless hit the victims face with her knee until she bled profusely from her mouth. She donated a puppy named Angel for Loveless to train in prison. In 1992, 12-year-old Shanda Sharer was brutally murdered by four other girls. [7], Marjorie had worked intermittently since 1974. Both Heavrin and Wathen were reluctant to believe the story until Tackett showed them the trunk of the car with Sharer's bloody handprints and socks still present. She was sentenced to 60 years in prison but has served the required [] MADISON, Ind. Known as one of the youngest serial killers ever, Mary was just 10 when she murdered two boys, age four and three, both by strangulation. That same day, the girls started talking. [32], Rippey told Sharer that Heavrin was still at the Witch's Castle. [59][60] A few weeks following his release, Larry unsuccessfully sued the Floyd County Jail for $39 million in federal court, alleging he had suffered cruel and unusual punishment during his two-year incarceration. She confessed to her involvement and said three others were involved: Hope Rippey, then 15, Mary Tackett, then 17, and Melinda Loveless, then 16. She was abused by a relative at age 9 and was raped by a teenage boy at age 14, although the police only issued an order for the boy to keep away from Lawrence. The details of her murder shocked the area. Murderpedia Shanda Sharer's killers. I had never heard of Shanda Sharer before she was killed, but her murder has made me a fervent advocate for the prevention of crime. And I'm doing it for Shanda.". [65] The play was published by Samuel French, Inc. in September 2009. "I was the bad person.". On the cold winter night of Jan. 10, 1992, Loveless enlisted three friends Laurie Tackett (17), Hope Rippey (15), and Toni Lawrence (15) to help her take her revenge on Shanda Sharer. "Odle comes in, and he's going to set with them, and they're going him hug him, and they're going to talk to him to make it easier for them," said Loveless. [43], Sharer's father, Steven, noticed his daughter was nowhere to be found early on January 11. Tackett grew up in a strict religious household where normal teenager things were not welcome behaviors. Among his complaints were that he was not allowed to sleep in his bed during the day or to read the newspaper. My opinion is that they [kill] to feel superior, or high on the victims fear, and theyre thirsty for the spill of blood.. Ultimately four teenage girls would be arrested and charged for the murd. After treatment of her wound, she was admitted to the hospital's psychiatric ward. The incident attracted international attention due to both the brutality of the murder and the young age of the perpetrators, who were aged between 15 and 17 years old. Full name: Shanda Rene Sharer. Shipley then started the paperwork to get warrants for the arrest of Laurie Tackett and Melinda Loveless. This tire-iron assault was off and on for hours as the girls went on a joyride through the countryside. My child would want this., Loveless, for her part, feels as if Vaught is helping her to overcome her past. At around 7 am on January 11, 1992, Shandas father, Steve, realized that his daughter wasnt at home in Jeffersonville, Indiana; she had been staying with him at the time. Most of the crimes occurred from 1968 to 1977. If you don't let good things come from bad things, nothing gets better. Larry became a Baptist lay preacher and Marjorie became the school nurse. The fund planned to provide scholarships to two students per year from Prosser School of Technology in New Albany; one scholarship to a student who is continuing his or her education, and the other scholarship to a student who is beginning his or her career and must buy tools or other work equipment. They drove north of Madison, past Jefferson Proving Ground to Lemon Road off U.S. Route 421, a place known to Rippey. Her father was a boilermaker. [5], Larry worked irregularly for the Southern Railway after his military service; his profession allowed him to work whenever most convenient for him. Rippey asked about Sharer, and Tackett laughingly described the torture. Craig Schoonover made that statement after Melinda. Although Heavrin and Loveless had never formally ended their relationship, Loveless started to date an older girl. Shanda was best friends with her mom, and close with her father and stepmother, Sharon. Join Mike and Morf as they discuss the murder of Shanda Sharer. And I know what my child would want. Melinda Loveless has spent more than 7,000 sunrises and sunsets -- half her life -- behind razor wire. But a dog named Angel is a dog like no other -- a four-legged conduit to Melinda's victim, Shanda Sharer. Rippey sprayed Sharer with Windex and taunted, "You're not looking so hot now, are you? She enlisted the help of her friend Laurie Tackett, 17, and the latter's childhood friends Hope Rippey, 15, and Toni Lawrence, 15. Instead, they stabbed her in the chest and strangled her with a rope before throwing her in the trunk of the car, thinking she was dead. There she met Loveless; the two became friends in late November. Social workers became involved, and Tackett's parents agreed to unannounced visits to ensure that child abuse was not occurring. And I said. On the cold winter night of Jan. 10, 1992, Loveless enlisted three friends Laurie Tackett (17), Hope Rippey (15), and Toni Lawrence (15) to help her take her revenge on Shanda Sharer. INDIANAPOLIS The last of four women charged as teenagers with the 1992 torture murder of a southern Indiana 12-year-old has been released from prison. "I saw someone who was almost reborn.". They lived in or near New Albany throughout Melinda's childhood. In 1965, Larry became a probationary officer with the New Albany Police Department, but was fired after eight months when he and his partner assaulted an African-American man whom Larry accused of sleeping with his wife. Call IndyStar reporter Justin L. Mack at (317) 444-6138. Just to be sure their work was finished, Loveless had them return a few minutes later to pour some more gasoline on her, watch her writhe in agony, and finally confirm that she was dead. Sharer was tortured, beaten and burned in a rural area of Jefferson County, Indiana. 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During the episode, Tackett said that if she could go back, she wouldn't have been there that nightand she would have done everything in her power to stop it. Vaught stated that she hoped to donate a dog every year in honor of Shanda Sharer. But the hands that once took life, now nurture it. The 12-year-old seemed to have things working for her, and when she went missing, she was enrolled in a Catholic school. Melinda felt crushed, especially when Larry remarried. MADISON, IND. [21] As with the other girls, Rippey began to self-harm at age 15. When the group of girls drove up to the house, Toni and Hope knocked on the front door; the girl's Daddy answered . Loveless began taking off Sharer's rings and handed each to the girls. Lawrence and Rippey younger, less involved in the torture, and more forthcoming with authorities received lighter sentences, with Lawrence getting 20 years and Rippey getting 50 (shortened to 35 on appeal). Follow him on Twitter: @justinlmack. There, Sharer and Heavrin were confronted by 16-year-old Melinda Loveless, who had previously been dating Heavrin for more than a year and was now extremely jealous of this new pairing. [42], Later on the morning of January 11, 1992, two brothers from Canaan were driving toward Jefferson Proving Ground to go hunting when they noticed a body on the side of the road. They left soon after, fearing they had drawn attention to themselves. The man definitely died from a broken heart".[61]. Amanda. And I know what my child would want. According to the show, Shanda began spending much time with her, and the two became romantically involved. Please logout and login again. "I was really taken aback," said Jacque. Shanda moved around a few times due to her parents divorcing. Shanda Renee Sharer was a 12 year old who was brutally murdered and tortured by 4 teenage girls (between the ages 15 and 17) in January 12, 1992. A burn victim like Shanda, Charlie Petrizzo convinced Jacque to watch a videotape of the new Melinda. The incident attracted international attention due to both the brutality of the murder and the young age of the perpetrators, who were aged between 15 and 17 years old. An Indiana program called ICAN, or Indiana Canine Assistant Network, has been helping Loveless. In an interview with Shanda Sharer's mother, Jacque Vaught, on the Investigation Discovery series Deadly Women, Vaught stated that Sharer's father was so destroyed by his daughter's murder that he "did everything he could to kill himself besides put a gun to his head" and that he "drank himself to death. As per the show, she was jealous of Shanda and had written angry letters to Amanda about killing her perceived competition. Concerned about the effects of their daughter's relationship with Heavrin, Sharer's parents arranged for her to transfer to a Catholic school in late November. After phoning neighbors and friends all morning, he called his former wife, Sharer's mother, at 1:45p.m.; they met and filed a missing person report with the Clark County sheriff. [53] On November 14, 2008, Loveless's appeal was denied by the Indiana Court of Appeals, upholding Judge Todd's ruling. "You know what, I didn't believe it," said Loveless of the gesture. Shanda was born on June 6th, 1979, and was born in Pineville, Kentucky. The incident attracted international attention due to both the brutality of the murder and the young age of the perpetrators, who were aged . The girls drove Sharer to Witches Castle in Utica where they bound her legs and arms and began their torture of the twelve-year-old girl. 12-year-old Shanda Sharer was murdered in 1992. Sharer was reluctant to go with them, yet agreed after changing her clothes. He sent letters to her for a while, playing on her emotions, but eventually severed all contact with her, and in December 1998, he died. Witnesses said thatLoveless plotted to kill Sharer because she believed Sharer had stolen her 15-year-old girlfriend from her. Lawrence, Rippey, and Tackett all had histories of self-harming behavior. The 12-year-old began to cry and tried to answer Loveless' questions, testimony showed. Sharer's mother and sister were also guests on the show. An Indiana Department of Correction spokeswoman says 44-year-old Melinda Loveless was released from the Indiana Womens Prison in Indianapolis on Thursday after serving 23 years and eight months of a 60-year sentence for the murder and criminal confinement of Shanda Sharer in 1992. Wikimedia CommonsA small memorial to Shanda Sharer in the field where she died. She did a good thing. So, lets find out more about this case then, shall we? All four girls were tried as adults and accepted plea bargains in order to avoid the death penalty. Despite a desperate search, there was no sign of Shanda, and the family filed a missing person report. LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A classmate of a southern Indiana girl murdered in 1992 said the Indiana justice system should be ashamed of itself. Loveless then convinced the other girls to take Sharer to a remote location where there would be no one else around for miles. That's all I've ever said.". Image of Melinda Loveless, taken in Dec. 2007. [19], Hope Anna Rippey was born in Madison on June 9, 1976. The grieving mother said she did it to honor her little girl, who she still thinks about every day. Jacque never wanted contact with any of Shanda's killers. Vaught donated a dog named Angel in Shanda's name to Loveless to train for the Indiana Canine Assistance Network program (ICAN) through Project2heal, which provides service pets to people with disabilities. Taken in Dec. 2007 victim being sexually assaulted with the 1992 torture murder Shanda... Does in prison but has served the required time for her involvement, and Tackett laughingly described what just... 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To read the newspaper self-harming behavior a place known to Rippey times due to her parents their! Stepmother, Sharon that she hoped to donate a dog like no other -- a four-legged to! Sharer in public and soon even talked about killing her perceived competition shanda sharer killers where are they now a 40-year sentence for involvement!
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