Shanabarger infanticideReturn to Shanabarger
Infanticide case has national spotlight 
BY VIC RYCKAERT AND PAUL BIRD 
Published on 06-29-1999  
 
FRANKLIN, Ind. - News media came from everywhere Monday to cover Ronald 
Shanabarger's twisted tale of revenge and infanticide. 
The horror story - a man who told police he plotted for more than two years to 
father a baby, wait for his wife to bond with the child and then kill the baby 
because she did not come home from a vacation when his father died before they 
were married - drew the throng to Franklin. 
The manner of death for 7-month-old Tyler Shanabarger - a veil of plastic wrap 
wound around his tiny head - was sensational, as well. 
To get the jump on the story, The Associated Press, the New York Post, 
television stations from Cincinnati and Indianapolis, and national news 
organizations such as Fox and CBS sent reporters and crews to Franklin. The 
Indianapolis Star and The Indianapolis News had three reporters on the scene at 
the Johnson County Courthouse. 
Shanabarger had his initial hearing there Monday. Just before leaving the 
Johnson County Jail en route to court, Shanabarger was fitted with a bulletpoof 
vest, as was his deputy escort. 
Johnson County Superior Court 1 Judge James Coachys entered a not-guilty plea to 
murder on behalf of Shanabarger, 30, a Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. worker. He 
was arrested Wednesday after the baby was found dead June 20. 
During Monday's hearing, Shanabarger said the home he shared with his wife, Amy, 
was valued at $90,000. He said he was leasing a GMC Jimmy and owned another, 
older truck. 
When the judge asked whether Shanabarger thought he had enough money to hire his 
own attorney, he said, "I don't know. I'd have to check with my wife.'' 
The judge suggested that help from his wife was unlikely and assigned public 
defender Richard Tandy to represent Shanabarger. 
Trial is scheduled for Nov. 30. 
As well as appearing in court, Johnson County Prosecutor Lance Hamner was 
interviewed live Monday morning on NBC's Today show. ABC's Good Morning America 
ran the story, too, with footage from a local affiliate. 
Some close to the proceedings said the ABC show 20/20 tried to contact family 
members. 
Johnson County Sheriff's Deputy Tom Shivley said the CBS news program 48 Hours 
talked to him about a story on the number of baby homicides in Johnson County. 
"I think the media is overly involved in this because of the bizarreness," said 
Shivley, the sheriff's spokesman. 
Reporters who did not make the 9 a.m. hearing tried to get the scoop with a 
phone call. 
Sue Vansickle, the assistant court reporter in Superior Court 1, said the phones 
were ringing like crazy. 
"Jiminy Christmas!" Vansickle exclaimed after a telephone conversation with a 
reporter from CBS Radio. "They asked me what color clothes he had on! What is 
the deal?" 
Hamner said statements provided by Shanabarger are still being digested by 
detectives. 
"Anyone with information they think police should know about should contact 
Franklin Police," Hamner said. 
Hamner said he didn't want to appear uncooperative about discussing the case, 
but he fears that any statements might lead to legal problems for him while 
prosecuting the case. 
Shanabarger could face the death penalty if convicted, but prosecutors have not 
decided whether to seek it. 
The media interest also poses concerns for Hamner. 
"We want to be able to have an impartial jury," he said. "All this publicity - 
that which is beyond the public record - causes me a great deal of concern." 
The Rev. Randy Maynard, the Franklin police chaplain, met with Shanabarger in 
jail after his arrest. Shanabarger was depressed, rattling off a list of things 
he had lost - his job, his house, his money, his wife, his friends and on and 
on. 
"I said, `And you lost Tyler too,''' Maynard told reporters Monday morning. "`Oh 
yeah, I lost the boy, too.' That was it for me. He said the wrong thing. I was 
out of there.'' 
The Associated Press contributed to this report. 
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