The gravestone for Hope Shepherd, also known as Baby Hope, features a new base with the name given to her by her father and the original headstone paid for by the Franklin community atop it Monday at Greenlawn Cemetery.
Noah Crenshaw | Daily Journal
By Noah Crenshaw | Franklin Daily Journal
For The Republic
FRANKLIN — For more than 30 years, the gravestone of a murdered Franklin newborn was a reminder of the shocking crime, the community’s support for the newborn and the efforts to identify her and what led to her death.
But in July, the parents of the baby girl were identified and she was given a name by her biological father. And now, her gravestone bears her full name too.
A new base has been installed for the headstone of the girl named “Baby Hope” by the Franklin community. It was installed on Friday at the request of Paul Shepherd, the girl’s biological father, who named her Hope Shepherd in honor of the name given to her by the Franklin community after her death in April 1994. He had the base made for her.
The body of a newborn baby girl had been discovered by two boys who were searching through a trash can in Temple Park for aluminum cans to recycle on April 13, 1994. The infant had been stabbed to death shortly after her non-clinical birth.
The murder of Baby Hope — the name police gave to the unidentified girl — shook the Franklin community. Franklin residents were horrified by the death and donated funds so Baby Hope would have a proper funeral and burial. She was buried in Greenlawn Cemetery in Franklin.
The identity of Hope’s parents — and the motive for killing her — had remained unknown since. But the identity of her parents was revealed July 14 by Franklin Police.
With the advanced support of DNA technology, investigators were able to use genealogy to identify Baby Hope’s mother as Cheryl Dawn Larson, who would’ve been around 31 years old at the time of Hope’s death. Cheryl Larson and her then-husband Richard N. Larson lived near Temple Park in 1994, Police Chief Kirby Cochran said during the July press conference.
Certain things about the case may never be known — including why Hope was killed — as Cheryl Larson died in 2018, a year before the investigation reopened, Cochran said. After identifying Baby Hope’s mother, investigators soon discovered that Richard Larson was not Baby Hope’s father, Lt. Chris Tennell said during the press conference.
Detectives interviewed Cheryl Larson’s friends and neighbors from 1994, along with members of her family. Through additional interviews and DNA testing, Baby Hope’s father was positively identified as Paul R. Shepherd, who has been cooperative with investigators, Tennell said.
Paul Shepherd was “shocked and grieved” when he learned he was Hope’s father. He was “completely unaware” that Larson, with whom he had a brief relationship, was pregnant with his or anyone else’s child.
“Mr. Shepherd continues to struggle with the grief which has exacerbated his health conditions and from which he can find no relief,” a statement from Shepherd said in July. “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 his child and no relief from the grief he endures from the unknown. Please respect the privacy of he and his family, it only brings them more suffering,” the statement continues.
Paul Shepherd named her Hope Shepherd in honor of the name given to her by the Franklin community. Now her grave features not only the original headstone purchased by the Franklin community nearly 30 years ago, but a base that includes the name given to her by Paul.
In a letter given to the Daily Journal by and signed by Paul Shepherd and his family, Paul thanked the city of Franklin and everyone who donated their time and money to give Baby Hope a proper funeral and burial. After learning she was his child, the ability to visit her grave meant more to him “than anyone could imagine,” he wrote in the letter.
“The grave and headstone given by the Franklin community provided me the opportunity to have a place to grieve for her that I would otherwise not have had,” Shepherd wrote.
“It has been overwhelming, emotional and humbling. However, what has stood out most is the community’s support for her over the years. You gave her a name. You gave her a resting place. And you never forgot her,” the letter continues.
Paul Shepherd wanted to place a new base with her full name under her existing headstone because she “now has both a name and a family.” He thanked Franklin Police and everyone who “never gave up on her,” along with Pinna Monuments in Indianapolis for helping with getting the “beautiful headstone base that honors her place in our family,” he wrote.
“Their care and attention meant a great deal during a difficult time,” Paul Shepherd wrote.
He added that he will never forget what the community did for Hope.
“To everyone in the community who remembered her, I will never forget what you’ve done,” he wrote. “We hope you will continue to visit her grave and keep her in your hearts, as you have truly become part of her extended family.”
Following the signature from Paul Shepherd and family, the letter concludes with a section of a verse from 2 Timothy 2:19: “The Lord knows those who are his.”
