The Tragic Story of Audrina Hepburn: Four Adults, Zero Answers

Audrina Claire Hepburn was a little girl affectionately nicknamed “Bug.” Born prematurely in Tacoma, Washington, on June 6, 2008, to Ashley Nicole Tolley Hepburn and Daniel Hepburn, she was described as a silly, giggly, sweet, and playful child.

However, her short life was marked by instability, and her sudden death left behind a tangled web of shifting blame, overturned convictions, and a devastating lack of justice.

A Fragile Beginning

Audrina arrived eight weeks early, weighing just 2 pounds, 9 ounces, and spent her first two months in the NICU. The immense stress of a premature baby, coupled with financial struggles, took a toll on Ashley and Daniel’s relationship. By January 2009, the couple separated.

Ashley relocated to a trailer home in Cross Hill, South Carolina, moving in with her mother, Doris Davis, and Doris’s boyfriend, David Crumley. She took Audrina and her older son, Owen, with her.

A month later, Ashley flew back to Washington to attempt a reconciliation with Daniel. The attempt failed drastically. After a night of heavy drinking, the two got into a physical altercation where Ashley gave Daniel a black eye. Despite this, Daniel still believed Ashley was a capable mother and agreed to grant her full custody of both children, settling for visits every few months.

By April 2009, Ashley began dating 25-year-old Richard Brandon Lewis, a college student at Clemson University. Daniel’s mother, Rita, suspected the affair had actually begun in 2007 while Daniel was deployed to Egypt with the National Guard. Brandon soon became a fixture at the trailer home, spending multiple nights a week there.

The Warning Signs

In late September 2009, Audrina and Owen visited their father and grandmother. Daniel and Rita were alarmed to find that Audrina had a chipped tooth and a prominent bruise on her forehead. Ashley brushed it off, claiming the baby had stood up and hit her head on the crib.

Daniel also noticed a petechial rash on his daughter’s body—a collection of tiny red or purple spots caused by broken capillaries, often resulting from physical trauma or serious infection. Ashley claimed ignorance but agreed to take Audrina to the doctor. However, when Daniel followed up after the appointment, Ashley immediately grew defensive, snapping, “No one choked her.”

That visit on October 8, 2009, would be the last time Daniel saw his daughter happy and healthy.

The Night of October 12, 2009

Just days later, on the evening of October 13, Audrina was rushed to a hospital in Greenwood, South Carolina, and later airlifted to a larger facility in Greenville due to the severity of her injuries. On October 17, 2009, Audrina was pronounced dead.

Doctors immediately noted horrific injuries: a subdural hematoma, retinal hemorrhaging, over 28 bruises (including facial bruising that suggested she had been forcefully grabbed), 10 fingernail marks on her shoulders, and a pinch mark on her ear. Medical experts concluded her injuries were the undeniable result of abusive head trauma, commonly known as Shaken Baby Syndrome. It was a violent force comparable to a severe car crash or falling from a ten-story building.

When questioned, Ashley confirmed there were four adults in the thin-walled trailer that night: herself, her boyfriend Brandon, her mother Doris, and Doris’s boyfriend David.

Ashley’s Version of Events: Ashley claimed she fed the kids around 8:00 p.m. Her mother and David went to sleep on the opposite side of the house. Brandon arrived shortly after. Ashley gave Audrina a bottle around 9:00 p.m., noting the baby was cranky from teething, and put her to bed. Later, while smoking a cigarette on the porch with Brandon, she heard Audrina crying. Ashley said she applied Orajel to the baby’s gums, settled her, and went back to the living room. Around 10:00 p.m., she spanked her older son, Owen, for refusing to brush his teeth, read him a book, and fell asleep with him in her bed. She claimed she was suddenly awakened at 1:30 a.m. by Brandon, who was holding an unresponsive Audrina.

Brandon’s Version of Events: Brandon stated he was the only one awake late into the night. Around 11:00 p.m., he checked on Audrina, and she popped her head up. He then asked Ashley if she wanted to watch a movie; she declined and went back to sleep. When he checked on Audrina again between 1:00 and 1:30 a.m., he found her pressed against the crib rails, limp and barely breathing.

The day after Audrina’s death, Brandon attempted suicide by overdosing on pills. He survived, insisting his actions were driven by grief, not guilt.

The Trial: Finger-Pointing and Shifting Blame

Both Ashley Hepburn and Brandon Lewis were eventually arrested. Ashley was charged with murder by child abuse, while Brandon was charged with murder by child abuse and aiding and abetting. They stood trial together in February 2011, both vehemently denying they had harmed the child.

Ashley pointed the finger entirely at Brandon. She testified that he was the only adult awake at the time of the injuries, meaning he had to be the culprit. She also claimed she rarely used corporal punishment, save for the single “pop” she gave her son that night.

Brandon’s defense painted a very different picture. He testified that Ashley was highly stressed that day after failing a drug test and losing out on a job opportunity. He admitted to hearing Ashley aggressively spank her son. More damningly, he testified that later in the evening, when Audrina began crying in her crib, Ashley angrily “stomped” into the infant’s room. Brandon said the baby’s cry suddenly changed to a stuttering, painful sound, as if she were being shaken, before abruptly stopping.

When police confronted Ashley with Brandon’s second statement detailing this event, she reportedly responded: “Oh my god, all of this is true, but I don’t remember hurting my baby.”

A Shocking Reversal and a Lack of Justice

At the conclusion of the trial, Ashley Hepburn was found guilty of homicide by child abuse and sentenced to 45 years in prison. Brandon Lewis was convicted solely of aiding and abetting, receiving a 10-year sentence with 3 years suspended.

In a bizarre twist, Audrina’s father, Daniel, expressed total support for Brandon. Despite initially being wary of him, Daniel stated after the trial: “I feel sorry for what he has gone through, and I blame him in no way for my daughter’s death… Losing Audrina has ruined a lot of lives, and I don’t want to see Brandon’s life ruined, too.”

But this small semblance of closure did not last.

In May 2013, both Ashley and Brandon appealed their convictions, citing insufficient evidence to conclusively prove who delivered the fatal injuries. Because multiple adults were in the home and forensic evidence could not definitively isolate the exact moment of the abuse, the appellate court overturned both of their convictions.

Both Ashley and Brandon were released from prison. Today, no one is serving time for the brutal death of little Audrina Hepburn. She is buried at the Sandy Springs United Methodist Church Cemetery, leaving behind a tragic legacy of a failed justice system and a deeply frustrating mystery regarding what truly happened behind the doors of that trailer home.