MURDERED: Carmen Van Huss

Episode of Crime Junkie · July 6, 2026 · 49 min

Ashley Flowers and Brit Prawat recount the 1993 Indianapolis murder of Carmen Van Huss and the decades-long investigation that led to Dana Shepard's guilty plea.

Summary

Ashley Flowers and Brit Prawat presented an episode originally released to the Crime Junkie fan club in January 2026 about the murder of 19-year-old Carmen Van Huss, who was stabbed about 60 times in her Turtle Creek apartment in Indianapolis on March 23, 1993, while neighbors heard her screams for 30 minutes and no one called 911. Flowers described Carmen's upbringing with her aunt's family, her last known movements, and how investigators cleared a series of boyfriends and ex-boyfriends, including two with out-of-state alibis, before the case went cold.

The episode focused on Sergeant Bill Carter, an officer with no homicide training who took up the case in 2013, obtained DNA profiles from evidence, and eliminated some 40 men. After a lab test mistakenly analyzed the victim's own DNA, Carter was refused funding for a retest, raised money through GoFundMe, and was ordered to return it and briefly removed from the case and suspended. Flowers criticized what she called the politics of policing and explained that Carter's plight inspired her to found Season of Justice, which later funded genealogical research.

Genetic genealogy work by Parabon NanoLabs and analyst Meera Patel pointed to the Shepard brothers, who had lived in Carmen's complex near the laundry room. Dana Shepard's DNA matched, and he was arrested in 2024. In an update, Flowers reported that Shepard pleaded guilty to murder on January 23, 2026, less than a week before trial, and was sentenced to 45 years, and that Carmen's Law, championed by Carmen's sister Pam Francis to create a framework for privately funded advanced DNA testing in cold cases, was signed into law in Indiana in March 2026.

Chapters

0:33
The night of the murder
Flowers introduces the rerelease and describes how neighbors heard Carmen Van Huss being attacked in 1993 but no one called for help.
6:01
Crime scene and Carmen's background
The hosts cover the evidence at the scene, the 60 stab wounds, and Carmen's complicated family life and circle of friends.
13:38
Retracing her last evening
Flowers reconstructs Carmen's movements, her call with her boyfriend Rob, and the unanswered question of the laundry room.
17:10
Early suspects cleared
Investigators scrutinize her friend Missy and ex-boyfriends Josh and Peter, all of whom are cleared before the case goes cold.
21:16
Bill Carter takes up the case
Sergeant Bill Carter, known for solving Amy Weidner's case, digitizes the file and develops DNA profiles that eliminate dozens of men.
29:11
The DNA mix-up and GoFundMe controversy
A lab tests the wrong sample, Carter crowdfunds a retest, and IMPD forces him to return the money and suspends him.
34:11
Flowers' involvement and Season of Justice
Flowers recounts cold-emailing Carter in 2017 and how the case inspired her nonprofit Season of Justice.
36:39
Genetic genealogy breakthrough
Parabon testing, an SOJ grant, and analyst Meera Patel's research lead to the Shepard brothers who lived in Carmen's complex.
40:47
Arrest of Dana Shepard
Dana Shepard's DNA matches the evidence, he is arrested in 2024, and Jimmy Van Huss thanks investigators at a press conference.
43:57
Remaining questions
The hosts discuss Shepard's background, his family's reaction, and unresolved details about Carmen's final night.
48:03
Plea deal and Carmen's Law
Flowers reports Shepard's guilty plea and 45-year sentence and the passage of Carmen's Law in Indiana.

Key points

What was said, by whom, with the exact words. Timestamps jump to the moment.

Ashley Flowers
Flowers stressed that none of Carmen's neighbors responded to her screams during the 30-minute attack.
“Not a single person gets up. Not a single person goes to her door”
Listen from 0:33 · Murder of Carmen Van Huss
Ashley Flowers
Flowers said that despite reports of a screwdriver or pocket knife, investigators told her the murder weapon was never found.
“could have been a pocket knife, the actual murder weapon has never been found”
Listen from 6:31 · Murder of Carmen Van Huss
Ashley Flowers
Flowers criticized the original investigation for apparently ignoring the laundry room, where she believed Carmen may have met her killer.
“it seems like the laundry room kind of just gets ignored, which is wild considering that it is very possible that is where she could have crossed paths with her killer”
Listen from 14:45 · Murder of Carmen Van Huss
Ashley Flowers
Flowers reasoned that the man heard with Carmen at 11 p.m. was likely the same person who killed her, since no one came forward.
“It seems more likely that we're actually looking at someone who's like one in the same”
Listen from 17:01 · Murder of Carmen Van Huss
Ashley Flowers
Flowers argued that Bill Carter's personal motivation distinguished him from previous detectives on the case.
“Unlike previous detectives, he's not looking into this case because he has to. He is looking into it because he wants to”
Listen from 27:16 · Cold case investigations
Brit Prawat
Prawat objected to IMPD's 'stay in their lanes' explanation, noting Carter was doing work no one else was doing.
“Literally, he's doing the job that no one else wanted or had time to do”
Listen from 32:06 · Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department
Ashley Flowers
Flowers condemned the department's discipline of Carter as a product of police politics and ego.
“the bullshit politics of policing that I have zero patience for. Your toes and your fragile egos”
Listen from 32:51 · Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department
Brit Prawat
Prawat argued that the family's petition showed how public pressure holds agencies accountable.
“this is why public pressure and attention matters. Like holding public service agencies accountable”
Listen from 34:01 · Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department
Ashley Flowers
Flowers cautioned that IMPD's announced reinstatement of Carter was superficial, urging listeners to look beyond headlines.
“Always go a layer deeper. Because that one shiny article that says, never mind, nothing to see here, isn't the end all be all”
Listen from 34:14 · Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department
Ashley Flowers
Flowers said her 2017 lunch with Carter about the case inspired her to found Season of Justice to fund cold case testing.
“that conversation was the inspiration behind Season of Justice, the nonprofit that I founded”
Listen from 36:54 · Season of Justice
Jimmy Van Huss
Jimmy Van Huss expressed hope that other DNA cold cases receive the same genealogical attention his sister's case did.
“I do have hope that any similar case with DNA can get this same treatment with the genealogy and everything we have available today”
Listen from 42:50 · Investigative genetic genealogy
Linked moment · 43:57Skip to 43:57 using a listen link in the info box.
Ashley Flowers
Flowers observed that genetic genealogy cases often identify a suspect without providing satisfying answers about motive.
“I'm finding more and more with these genealogy cases, there are no answers or like no satisfying ones at least”
Listen from 43:57 · Investigative genetic genealogy
Ashley Flowers
Flowers noted that Shepard's plea meant he never had to testify about what happened, leaving the family with unanswered questions.
“The plea also means that Dana doesn't have to ever get on the stand or make his case for what exactly happened”
Listen from 48:03 · Plea bargaining
Ashley Flowers
Flowers reported that Carmen's Law creates a framework for private funding of advanced DNA testing in cases unsolved for five or more years.
“there will now be an established framework for private funding of advanced DNA testing in all cases that have gone unsolved for five or more years”
Listen from 49:13 · Carmen's Law (Indiana)

People

In the conversation

Ashley FlowersCreator and host of the true crime podcast Crime Junkie and founder of Audiochuck
Brit PrawatCo-host of Crime Junkie, introduced in the episode as 'Britt'
Jimmy Van Huss

Discussed

Bill CarterIndianapolis police officer who investigated Carmen Van Huss's cold case, rising from sergeant to captain
Dana ShepardFormer neighbor of Carmen Van Huss who pleaded guilty to her murder in 2026
Pam FrancisCarmen Van Huss's sister who championed Carmen's Law in Indiana
James Van HussCarmen Van Huss's biological father who discovered her body
Meera PatelIMPD nuisance abatement analyst who helped identify the Shepard brothers through genealogy research
Nicole KaganCrime Junkie reporter who interviewed Alicia Cordova and researched the case

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From the publisher

On March 23, 1993, screams tore through the thin walls of a gated Indianapolis apartment complex as 19-year-old Carmen Van Huss fought for her life. Neighbors heard the attack, but no one called 911. Carmen was assaulted, mutilated, and killed. For decades, her murder remained unsolved – until a relentless investigator identified a suspect. And after more than 30 years, Carmen’s family finally saw justice.

Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on September 29, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.

Categories: True Crime