Florida teen charged in stepsister’s cruise death to stay out of jail for now - BERITAJA

A national judge connected Wednesday opted for now not to jailhouse a Florida teen accused of sexually assaulting and sidesplitting his stepsister aboard a cruise ship, saying he could stay successful the custody of a family personnel while the judge deliberates.

Timothy Hudson, 16, has been free since his 18-year-old step-sister, Anna Kepner, was recovered dormant nether a furniture aboard a Carnival cruise vessel past year.

In April, he entered a not-guilty plea and waived his quality astatine a proceeding successful Miami national tribunal connected charges of execution and aggravated intersexual maltreatment successful Kepner’s death.

At the clip of her decease successful November, Hudson was arrested, charged arsenic a juvenile and permitted to unrecorded pinch an uncle nether physics monitoring earlier being indicted arsenic an big by a expansive assemblage successful February, which raised the anticipation of being held successful jailhouse until he goes connected trial.

The indictment arsenic an big intends while Hudson was not primitively named by constabulary erstwhile being charged arsenic a juvenile, he has now been publically named.

During his ruling Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Edwin Torres said, “If it were a 20-year-old nether the nonstop circumstances I about apt would person detained,” Beritaja reported.

“The presumption would beryllium we were conscionable not going to return that chance,” he continued. “This is simply a different animal.”

He besides noted that detaining Hudson successful Miami-Dade County — wherever he was charged — would make it difficult for his family members, who unrecorded hundreds of miles away, to sojourn him, adding that he wanted to research the action of holding Hudson person to home.

The judge ended Wednesday morning’s proceeding without making a last decision, saying he wanted to speak pinch the U.S. Marshals Service about the logistics of holding Hudson successful Central Florida, person to his family, alternatively than South Florida, wherever the proceedings is taking place, The Associated Press reported.

Minors are seldom prosecuted successful national court, but this lawsuit landed location because Kepner reportedly died successful world waters, extracurricular immoderate state’s jurisdiction.

It is chartless erstwhile Torres will make his last decision.

According to tribunal records, Hudson was travelling aboard Carnival Cruise Line’s Horizon pinch Kepner and different family members connected aliases about Nov. 6-7, 2025, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of Florida said successful a property release past month.

The Miami-Dade Medical Examiner’s Office later wished the origin of decease to beryllium mechanical asphyxiation, it added.

Mechanical asphyxia is erstwhile an entity aliases beingness unit stops personification from breathing.

Hudson faces a maximum punishment of life successful situation if convicted, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office

Kepner, a caller precocious schoolhouse graduate, was travelling pinch her family connected the Carnival Horizon cruise from Miami to the Caribbean erstwhile she died. Her stepbrother was first identified arsenic a suspect in her decease successful November 2025, according to tribunal documents revenge by his divided parents complete custody of their youngest kid successful Brevard County, on Florida’s Space Coast.

— pinch files from The Associated Press and BERITAJA’ Katie Scott