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. Vaught stated that she hoped to donate a dog every year in honor of Shanda Sharer. Loveless explained to the two other girls that she disliked Sharer for being a copycat and for stealing her girlfriend.[28]. Shanda endured hell and was later put in the trunk of the car, only in her underwear. Its my choice to make. Among his complaints were that he was not allowed to sleep in his bed during the day or to read the newspaper. [56], Tackett was released from Rockville Correctional Facility on January 11, 2018, the 26th anniversary of Sharer's death, after serving nearly 26 years, and has completed an additional year of parole.[57]. Full name: Shanda Rene Sharer. "If you don't let good things come from bad things, nothing gets better. Heavrin was horrified and asked to be taken home. 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. The girls used the pretense that they were taking Sharer to see Heavrin as the excuse for their visit. [63] A documentary produced by Episode 11 Productions, titled Charlie's Scars, captured Vaught's decision to allow Loveless to train dogs in Shanda's name. Unfortunately, that did nothing to stop the horrific events that would soon unfold. She has chosen to keep her life private since then, and not much is known about what she currently does; her last known location remains to be Indiana. She's like my kid," said Loveless. So I get it," said Loveless from the Indiana Women's Prison in Indianapolis. She was 12 years old at the time of her death. After her parents divorced, her mother re-married and moved to Louisville, Kentucky. That torture wasnt enough to satiate the older girls. 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. Sharer told the girls to return after her parents were asleep, which they did. The cause of death was smoke inhalation. She even showed Amanda the bloody trunk and Shanda's bloody clothes. Sharer was tortured, beaten and burned in a rural area of Jefferson County, Indiana. In March 1991, Loveless came out as a lesbian to her mother, who was initially furious but eventually accepted it. [47] Loveless and Tackett were arrested on January 12. Small also argued that Loveless, who was 16 years old when she signed the plea agreement, was too young to enter into a contract in the state of Indiana without consent from a parent or guardian, which had not been obtained. Then, discover the story of teenage serial killer Harvey Robinson. Catch the episode of The 1990s: The Deadliest Decade, titled The New Girl, on Investigation Discovery on August 19, 2022. Loveless served more than 26 years in prison for murder and criminal confinement. The perpetrators were four teenage girls who committed unspeakable crimes under the influence of teenage jealousy and peer pressure. After reading about the murder of Bobby Kent that inspired the film "Bully," learn about . She would often attempt to impress her friends by pretending to be possessed by the spirit of "Deanna the Vampire". But 20 years later, something no one expected happened. Jacqueline was divorced from Shandas father, but they moved to New Albany, Indiana, to be closer to him. At present, all of them are out of prison, much before the end of their sentences. Her death is notable due to the torture she endured for more than 10 hours, and subsequently being burned alive. Slaughter 35,000 Civilians During One Korean War Massacre Or Is It North Korean Propaganda? 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. Vaught reported that she had endured criticism over the decision, but defends it saying, "It's my choice to make. "They're going to have that.". For nearly eight hours, the girls sexually assaulted and tortured Shanda Sharer, except for Toni Lawrence which refused to participate in the heinous act. 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. Rippey was released on parole on April 28, 2006, from Indiana Women's Prison after serving 14 years of her original sentence. Meanwhile, Lawrence and Rippey stayed behind in Tacketts car. It is alleged that Loveless, Tackett, Rippey and Lawrence came from troubled or abusive . Despite a desperate search, there was no sign of Shanda, and the family filed a missing person report. All four girls were tried as adults and accepted plea bargains in order to avoid the death penalty. They arrived at Sharer's house shortly before dark. Died: 11 January 1992. "I was really taken aback," said Jacque. MADISON, IND. [25], After Heavrin and Sharer attended a festival together in late October, Loveless began to discuss killing Sharer and threatened her in public. In 1992, four teen girls tortured and killed 12-year-old Shanda Sharer. In January 1992, Shanda Sharer was brutally tortured and murdered by four teenage girls, led by Melinda Loveless, a 17-year-old girl from Louisville. Shanda Renee Sharer (June 6, 1979 - January 11, 1992) was an American girl who was tortured and burned to death in Madison, Indiana by Melinda Loveless, Laurie Tackett, Hope Rippey, and Toni Lawrence. Tackett further taunted Sharer, claiming that the Witch's Castle was filled with human remains and Sharer's would be next. From what we can tell, she chooses to keep a low profile and spends time with her children and father. They returned to the car but became lost again and pulled up to another gas station. Shanda Sharer, a 16-year-old girl from Missouri, was murdered in 1998. However, what was in store for them was much darker. Melinda Loveless was the ringleader responsible for the murder of Shanda Sharer, along with her three accomplices, Laurie Tackett, Hope Rippey and Toni Lawrence. The Events Leading to the Murder At the time of her murder, Shanda Renee Sharer was the 12-year old daughter of divorced parents, attending school at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic school in New Albany, Indiana, after transferring the previous year from Hazelwood Middle School. Her parents divorced in February 1984, and she moved with her mother and siblings to Quincy, Michigan, for three years. The incident attracted international attention due to both the brutality of the murder and the young age of the perpetrators, who were aged . She said her goal is to make Shanda proud of her, and she believes Angel would do that. On appeal, a judge reduced the sentence to 35 years. I've given her medicine, her baths. Nationality: American. William DeLong is a freelance wordsmith. 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. They became lost, so they stopped at a gas station and covered Sharer in a blanket. Shanda Sharer Murder: Where Are Her Killers Now? 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. And I know what my child would want. 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. Like Mary, Melindas last known location is Indiana. MADISON, Ind. "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. Shanda Renee Sharer was born June 6th 1979 in Pineville, Kentucky. The girls then took Sharer into their car and told her they were going to drive her to the meeting place at the Witchs Castle, an isolated and abandoned house that served as a local teen hangout. 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. In tears and fearful for her life, Sharer tried to respond but to no avail. Please logout and login again. She currently goes by a different name and works for a trucking company based out of Madison. [34], Tackett led them to a dark abandoned building off a logging road in a densely forested area. 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. At the Witch's Castle, they took a sobbing Sharer inside and bound her arms and legs with rope. Now 36, she grew up in prison, in the shadow of her legacy: a crime of jealousy. In October 2007, Loveless's attorney, Mark Small, requested a hearing to argue for his client's release. I saw someone almost reborn. [1], 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. Everyone involved had been sworn to secrecy. "I was the monster. Loveless then convinced the other girls to take Sharer to a remote location where there would be no one else around for miles. Loveless began taking off Sharer's rings and handed each to the girls. Sharer was reluctant to go with them, yet agreed after changing her clothes. Jacque Vaught said she hopes to give away a service dog raised in prison every year in Shanda's name, and she is open to Melinda raising more of them. Tackett claimed that she was molested at least twice as a child at ages 5 and 12. She was 12 years old at the time of her death. In May 2011, Tackett appeared on an episode of "Dr. That said, Loveless did have a difficult childhood. In 2012, Shanda Sharer's mother Jackie Vaught made headlines when she publicly forgave Melinda Loveless. [41], A friend of Loveless, Crystal Wathen, came over to Loveless's house, and they told her what had happened. 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. Witnesses said thatLoveless plotted to kill Sharer because she believed Sharer had stolen her 15-year-old girlfriend from her. However, Jacqueline forbade her daughter from seeing Amanda because of some letters she had written that were sexual in nature. [68], "Mean", an episode from the fifth season of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, is based on the murder. [43], Sharer's father, Steven, noticed his daughter was nowhere to be found early on January 11. Stephen resettled in Jeffersonville, Indiana with his wife, Sharon. When they opened the trunk, Sharer sat up, covered in blood with her eyes rolled back in her head, but unable to speak. [31], Eventually, the four girls left for Sharer's house. Shanda Sharer met classmate Amanda Heavrin at Hazelwood in 1991, soon after moving to the area with her recently divorced mother from Kentucky. After treatment of her wound, she was admitted to the hospital's psychiatric ward. [17], Tackett stayed in Louisville in October 1991 to live with various friends. Extended family members often described the Loveless daughters as visiting their homes hungry, apparently not getting enough food at home. Melinda Loveless, 17, Laurie Tackett, 17, Hope Rippey, 16, and Toni Lawrence, 16, plotted to murder Shanda as retaliation for Shanda dating Loveless's ex-girlfriend, Amanda Heavrin. Shanda Sharer. The whole thing happened around the jealousy stemming from lesbian relationships. Shanda Sherer Shanda Sherer Shanda Sherer was born on June 6, 1979, in Pineville, Kentucky. [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. [12], In November 1990, after Larry was caught spying on Melinda and a friend, Marjorie attacked him with a knife; he was sent to the hospital after he attempted to grab it. 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. Loveless ordered Sharer to tell the truth about stealing the girlfriend or have her throat slit. [5], Larry worked irregularly for the Southern Railway after his military service; his profession allowed him to work whenever most convenient for him. 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. [32], Rippey told Sharer that Heavrin was still at the Witch's Castle. [60], Sharer's father, Steven Sharer, died of alcoholism in 2005 at the age of 53. In 1991, Shanda Sharer was a bubbly 12-year-old attending Hazelwood Middle School in New Albany, Ind. 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