Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of abuse and murder. Reader discretion is advised.
The upcoming episode of Mean Girl Murders will be aired on ID on Monday, April 8, 2024, at 9 p.m. ET. It will revolve around the torture and murder of 12-year-old Shanda Sharer.
On January 10, 1992, Shanda Sharer, who had been staying at her father’s house in Jeffersonville, Indiana, was picked up in a car by four teenage girls—Melinda Loveless, Hope Rippey, Toni Lawrence, and Lauri Tackett. Chicago Tribune reported that Loveless was upset that Shanda had been trying to “steal” her girlfriend away from her and expressed to her friends that “she would like to kill Shanda.”
The outlet reported that the girls then picked up Shanda Sharer while Loveless hid on the floor in the backseat. According to court documents, a little while after Sharer got into the car, Loveless allegedly pulled her head back and threatened her with a knife. However, none of the girls immediately harmed her. Instead, they drove her to an abandoned house in Madison, Indiana.
They then went over to Lauri Tackett’s house, where Loveless physically assaulted Shanda Sharer. She reportedly punched her in the stomach and kneed her in the mouth while Tackett choked and stabbed Sharer. She then locked her in the car’s trunk. Tackett and Loveless then drove around for most of the night. Per the court documents, Tackett also beat Shanda Sharer with a tire iron.
After that, they returned to Tackett’s house to join Rippey and Lawrence and decided to dispose of the body by burning it. At this time, the four girls were reportedly unaware that Shanda Sharer had not died. They reached a location that Rippey suggested and poured gasoline on the victim before burning her and driving away.
What did Shanda Sharer’s autopsy reveal?
Per Tampa Bay Times, the autopsy report revealed that Shanda Sharer’s wrists and ankles had been tied. Her head showed evidence of blunt force trauma, with slashings present on her legs. She was also sodomized with a foreign object. The report suggested that she was burned alive with gasoline, and the cause of death resulted from smoke inhalation and burns.
Two bird watchers, Donn and Ralph Foley, accidentally discovered Shanda Sharer’s corpse, which was dumped off near the woods. According to the Chicago Tribune, when they found her burned body, her arm muscles were drawn upwards, and her fists were closed. This is a common reaction to extreme heat, confirming that she was alive when she was burned.
The outlet reported that a 15-year-old boy reported to authorities that he overheard a group of girls talking about the killing of someone. Soon after, Toni Lawrence and her parents visited the Madison police station, where she gave an account of the incident.
Indy Star reported that all of the girls were teenagers at the time of Shanda Sharer’s murder, but they were tried as adults. The court reportedly found them guilty in relation to the slaying. Loveless and Tackett were each sentenced to 60 years in prison. Meanwhile, Rippey was also sentenced to 50 years and Lawrence to 20 years. All of them have now been released from prison, per Fox 59.
Mean Girl Murders will explore the murder of Shanda Sharer on April 8, 2024, at 9 p.m. ET.
