A custody battle between Anna Kepner’s stepmom and her ex-husband has led to some interesting revelations about how the family responded in the immediate aftermath of the teen’s death onboard Carnival Horizon.

The Florida teen’s body was found in her stateroom, under a bed and hidden by life jackets, on November 7, 2025. Her cause of death was determined to be asphyxiation.

Released text messages between Shauntel Hudson-Kepner (Anna’s stepmom) and her ex-husband, Thomas Hudson, show what was going through the family’s minds immediately after her body was found.

Their response was somewhat surprising, starting with the fact that Hudson-Kepner waited 32 hours to actually inform her ex-husband that Anna had died.

“I need you to call me asap it’s an emergency,” Hudson-Kepner wrote to Hudson on Nov. 8, at 7:30 p.m.

This would have been well after the family had disembarked from the Carnival ship in Miami that morning, so Wi-Fi issues at sea or not having a Wi-Fi package can’t be used as an excuse.

Launching Into Damage Control

The text messages also show that the parents’ top priority wasn’t Anna, but rather to try to prevent information about her death from being released in order to protect their 16-year-old son.

The step-sibling was sharing a cruise cabin with Anna, along with another 14-year-old sibling, and is currently the prime suspect in the homicide.

“OK, I know everything is supposed to be hush hush for now but ive seen that it is still getting out with post and comments between facebook tiktok and stuff,” Hudson texted on Nov. 9 around 10:35 a.m.

“… I just want to make sure until things are certain that he doesn’t get an(y) unnecessary comments towards him,” Hudson continued.

Hudson-Kepner’s response suggests that the parents knew possible charges could be coming for their son, long before it was revealed publicly that he was a suspect.

“He is a minor so his name shouldn’t be anywhere and when we talk to the fbi again we will reiterate that we do not want his name out there and everything that’s been posted on tiktok and social media nobody knows anything and everybody’s just speculating,” Hudson-Kepner responded, in part.

“We know what I told you last night and we’ll know exactly more when the autopsy is done. Once we get the autopsy today, depending on what it says, depend on whether he’s booked on those charges,” Anna’s step-mother continued.

In additional texts, the parents also agreed that they would stand by their son, despite concerns from Hudson-Kepner that supporting him would “jeopardize” her marriage to Anna’s father.

Hudson-Kepner also wrote about speaking to her son while he was hospitalized for psychiatric evaluation, where he was placed immediately after disembarking the cruise.

Per her messages, the step-son repeatedly said that he couldn’t remember anything from the night of Anna’s death.

No Arrests Made Yet

As of the time of publication, no arrest has been made in the Anna Kepner case.

Per court filings, the 16-year-old suspect was released to another relative following his hospitalization, where they are caring for him at an undisclosed location.

At a December 5 custody hearing, Hudson-Kepner’s attorney, Millicent Athanason, strongly implied that charges would very likely be filed soon.

The attorney suggested that the delay could be related to a debate on if the FBI will hand over the case to local or state authorities, but the FBI has not confirmed this.

At this rate, any criminal proceedings likely won’t unfold until after the holidays, but hopefully Anna will get justice in the new year.

Text Messages Shed New Light on Cruise Ship Death of Anna Kepner