JACKSONVILLE, FL – Shannon McCarthy, 36, has been sentenced to 30 years in Florida State Prison after pleading guilty to Second-Degree Murder, Tampering with Evidence, and Written Threats to Kill or Do Bodily Injury in the death of her girlfriend, Heather Sheppard. The sentence was part of a negotiated plea and was handed down by the Honorable Meredith Charbula.
The case began on July 3, 2023, when Sheppard’s daughter reported her mother missing after last seeing her a few days prior at the Colonial Avenue home she shared with McCarthy. The daughter became suspicious when McCarthy refused to let her and another person inside the home to check on Sheppard. The next day, when the daughter returned to collect Sheppard’s belongings, McCarthy again refused to allow her on the front porch, and the daughter reported smelling a foul odor.
On July 5, detectives from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) Missing Persons Unit were granted consent to search the home by McCarthy, who was seen throwing a tarp over items on the front porch. When detectives removed the tarp, they discovered Sheppard’s body.
Homicide detectives took over the investigation, and neighbors reported hearing gunshots on June 28 and June 30. Multiple firearms were seized from the home as evidence. McCarthy was detained and admitted to sending Sheppard text messages threatening to kill her. An autopsy confirmed Sheppard had been shot multiple times, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement confirmed that the projectiles recovered matched McCarthy’s gun.
The case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and prosecuted by Assistant State Attorney Joseph Licandro.