Anna Kepner’s Father Subpoenaed in Custody Dispute Amid FBI Homicide Investigation

Court records show overlapping investigations, competing allegations, and questions about parental judgment as both sides prepare for a Dec. 5 emergency hearing.

Kelly McBride Ni

Published: 11/25/2025, 11:23:10 PM EST

Anna Kepner’s Father Subpoenaed in Custody Dispute Amid FBI Homicide Investigation — Carnival Cruise Line's Carnival Horizon cruise ship is shown docked at PortMiami on April 9, 2021. (Wilfredo Lee/AP Photo)

As the FBI investigates the homicide of 18-year-old Anna Kepner aboard a Carnival cruise ship, her father, Christopher Kepner, has been subpoenaed to testify in a custody dispute involving his third wife, Shauntel Kepner (though court records show her last name as Hudson), and Shauntel’s ex-husband, Thomas Hudson, in Brevard County, Florida.

On Nov. 25, Christopher Kepner was subpoenaed to testify in a Dec. 5 emergency custody hearing, according to court filings. The subpoena, issued by Thomas’s attorney, orders Kepner to provide testimony in the custody dispute between Shauntel and Thomas.

Court records show the dissolution of Shauntel and Thomas's marriage began in October 2024, along with the ongoing custody battle of their three children: an 18-year-old, a 16-year-old, and a 9-year-old. Their 16-year-old is currently a suspect in the FBI's investigation into the homicide of Anna Kepner on the Carnival Cruise.

During a Nov. 20 meeting to schedule the emergency hearing in family court, Shauntel’s attorney stated that the 16-year-old was hospitalized after the cruise, has been staying with a maternal relative, and has been getting counseling since Anna’s death.

Thomas's attorney is seeking an emergency order for the father to gain custody of their youngest child. His attorney argued that, given the “circumstances regarding the 16-year-old" and "the mother’s judgment”, the father is concerned about her ability to care for the 9-year-old. He’s also alleging that the father is being alienated from his children.

His attorney claimed that “appropriate supervision” was not exercised over the 16-year-old or their other child on the cruise ship. For the upcoming emergency custody hearing, the father’s attorney said he will be issuing three to four subpoenas: the 16-year-old son, a stepmother, Anna’s father, and perhaps a fourth.

His attorney also cited allegations that Shauntel permitted drinking while in international waters. Shauntel’s attorney, confirming the FBI’s involvement, added, “The FBI has cleared my client from any wrongdoing; she’s not considered a suspect in this matter at all,” and added that video footage shows that Shauntel did not allow underage drinking on the cruise. However, she stated that the father has an open investigation with the Department of Children and Families (DCF). A DCF investigation is initiated with reports of abuse.

The judge cautioned against compelling the teen to testify, considering the circumstances surrounding Anna’s death. Thomas’s attorney later indicated that Thomas may decide not to call his 16-year-old son to the stand to testify in the custody dispute.

Shauntel’s attorney has also requested that the case be sealed to prevent media coverage, citing the case's national attention. The judge, however, noted that multiple media outlets were already present in the courtroom for the Nov. 20 meeting. A video of the meeting has been posted on Court TV.

Anna was found dead in her cabin around 11:15 a.m. on Nov. 7 while on a family cruise. Her body was found by a maid wrapped in a blanket and covered with life jackets under the bed. Her paternal grandparents, who were also on the cruise, in a televised interview, told ABC News that the death was ruled a homicide by “mechanical asphyxiation,” though authorities have not publicly named a suspect, and no criminal charges have been filed.