Timothy Hudson, Anna Kepner stepbrother appears in federal court in sealed case as family claim teen is to face homicide charges as an adult as boy is released back to family after closed hearing.
The 16-year-old stepbrother of slain 18-year-old Titusville, Florida girl, Anna Kepner appeared before a federal magistrate in a locked courtroom with his public defenders, prosecutors and U.S. Marshals, three months after her asphyxiation death.
The teen, identified as Timothy Hudson (Tim Hudson) on social media has been the focus of investigations in the ‘homicide death’ of his stepsister on a Carnival cruise ship in November.
Timothy ‘Tim’ Hudson, Anna Kepner stepbrother indicted in murder of Anna Kepner who he lusted over
Anna Kepner stepbrother appears in closed court hearing
Court documents related to the past marriage of Kepner’s stepmother, Shauntel Hudson stated the 16-year-old stepbrother was a suspect in Kepner’s death.
The 16-year-old appeared before a federal magistrate in a locked courtroom with his public defenders, prosecutors and U.S. Marshals in front of a federal judge in Miami.
The criminal docket for the magistrate judge revealed a sealed case, so any charges he may face have not been publicly released. The teen later walked to another courthouse, where he went into a probation office where defendants are processed for pretrial release.
Following Friday’s proceedings it remained unclear whether the stepbrother had been formally accused of any wrongdoing. Nevertheless a social media post shared by Anna Kepner’s grandmother on Wednesday indicated that the teen had agreed to surrender to the FBI and would face homicide charges, with prosecutors seeking to try him as an adult.
Posted the grandmother, ‘He was charged but his father fired the attorney and got three days more of discovery. He was charged as a juvenile for the state of Florida. The FBI will charge him as an adult. We just have to let the process happen and that’s why the family’s not speaking.’
Inappropriate conduct and 16-year-old with crush on older step-sister
Kepner, 18, died on the Carnival Horizon cruise ship on Nov. 7 while on vacation with her family.
The cruise ship returned to PortMiami the next day, as was planned, and Kepner’s death was ruled a homicide.
A high school cheerleader and senior at Temple Christian School, Kepner was set to graduate this year. Leading up to the 18-year-old’s death, Kepner had been traveling on the Carnival Horizon ship with her father, grandparents, stepmother and her stepmother’s two children, including the 16-year-old boy.
Prior reports included inappropriate conduct and behavior towards the older teen step-sister who the 16-year-old is alleged to have been ‘fixated on,’ and having a ‘crush on.’
‘The Three Amigos, are best friends.’
A legal filing said Kepner was found asphyxiated under a bed on the cruise ship inside a room she was sharing with the 16-year-old stepbrother. There was no indication of sexual assault.
At the time of her death, the teen girl had been sharing a stateroom with her 14-year-old brother and Timothy Hudson.
Kepner’s stepmother, Shauntel Hudson, explained that the three teens had voluntarily chosen to share a room rather than join their grandparents in a different room a few decks above.
‘They wanted to stay together,’ Shauntel Hudson testified back in December. ‘The three of them, like the Three Amigos, are best friends.’
At this time, investigators have not confirmed the details that Timothy Hudson is a suspect in Kepner’s death. So far, officials have declined to state whether the boy had been arrested in the case and it remained unclear if formal charges had been filed.
Following Friday’s court meeting, the 16-year-old was released back to the custody of the family he’d been staying with in Brooksville. Kepner’s father and stepmother responded to Friday’s events with a statement that read i in part:
‘The loss of our daughter is a pain that will never fully heal. She was taken from us in a violent and senseless way, and our family has been permanently changed. Our grief is overwhelming, and her absence is felt in every part of our lives. No parent should ever have to bury their child, and no words can fully express the depth of our loss.’
