FRANKLIN, Ind. (WXIN) – After more than three decades, investigators have identified “Baby Hope” and her parents.
On April 13, 1994, around 5 p.m., a newborn was discovered stabbed to death inside a trash can at Temple Park in Franklin, Indiana. Two boys collecting recyclables stumbled upon her body and contacted the police.
The autopsy revealed that the baby had suffered multiple stab wounds, and the coroner classified the case as a homicide. The police and community gave her the name “Baby Hope,” and thanks to donations, she was afforded a respectful burial complete with a headstone. Her DNA was preserved by investigators with the hope that it could one day shed light on her identity.
For 31 years, the mystery of the baby’s identity and her parents’ identities remained unsolved. However, due to advancements in DNA technology and the relentless efforts of investigators, the public now finally has some answers.
Police identified the baby’s mother as Cheryl D. Larson. Her husband, however, was not the baby’s father. Testing and genealogy determined that a man named Paul R. Shepherd was the baby’s biological father.
Franklin Police Chief Kirby Cochran and other investigators revealed the information during a news conference on Monday at Greenlawn Cemetery, where Baby Hope has been laid to rest for the last three decades.
Shepherd was unaware he was the girl’s father, according to police. Officials said he also cooperated with the investigation and submitted a DNA sample.
Shepherd, taking inspiration from the community, also decided to officially name the baby Hope Shepherd.
Cochran said the case was reopened in 2019 so detectives could go through the investigation with fresh eyes. Information from public DNA databases — not private and commercial ones like 23andMe — helped them identify Baby Hope’s biological parents.
“Only data from the users who had given permission for law enforcement matching was used, ensuring respect for their privacy and consent,” said Lt. Chris Tennell, investigations commander for Franklin PD. “No private or restricted genetic database was accessed.”
While that mystery has been solved, several questions remain unanswered. The baby’s mother died in 2018, and could not be interviewed.
Investigators were unable to determine her level of involvement in Baby Hope’s death. For now, there are no criminal charges being brought in the case. That could change if new information comes to light.
“This is not a closed case,” Tennell said. “But we needed to share this information with the community. While we remain deeply saddened by the tragic and unjust loss of Baby Hope, we are grateful to finally achieve some degree of closure after 31 years.”
Johnson County Coroner Mike Pruitt said DNA is a significant piece of the puzzle. However, there are still things about the case that investigators don’t know or understand.
“We still have open questions,” Pruitt said. “DNA is not going to answer those questions for us. If this stimulates any information, any thoughts that you can bring to law enforcement to help us bring complete closure to this case, that would be the biggest closing point.”
Tennell, Pruitt and Cochran credited the tireless work of investigators and advances in DNA and forensic technology for Monday’s significant update.
“I know these are not 100% the answers we wanted,” Cochran said. “But we are here today with some closure for the community.”
Police provided a statement on Shepherd’s behalf:
Paul Shepherd was shocked and grieved to learn that the child known as Hope was his child. Mr. Shepherd was completely unaware that a woman with whom he had a brief relationship was pregnant with his or anyone’s child. He first became aware that the child was his after voluntarily providing a DNA sample to police. The shock of this revelation was overwhelming and continues to be so still today.
Mr. Shepherd continues to struggle with the grief which has exacerbated his health conditions and from which he can find no relief. The very thought that a child fathered by him was subjected to such evil is one he cannot escape from.
Please understand the anguish this causes him and his family and the pain any discussion of the matter brings. He has no answers which shed any light on the murder of this child and no relief from the grief he endures from the unknown. Please respect the privacy of [him] and his family, it only brings them more suffering.
Statement from Paul Shepherd
