Christopher Kepner opened up about why he and his daughter’s stepmother do not plan to attend the trial in June

Anna Kepner

Anna Kepner.Credit : Anna Kepner/Instagram

Anna Kepner’s father will not be at her murder trial unless he absolutely has to be.

Anna, 18, was found dead aboard the Carnival Cruise Line’s Horizon in November as it traveled through international waters. Her 16-year-old stepbrother, identified in court documents as T.H., has been charged with murder and aggravated sexual abuse in connection with her death.

In a new interview with the Daily Mail, Anna’s dad, Christopher Kepner, said that as the murder case heads to trial in June, he will not be present — nor will his wife and T.H.’s mother, Shauntel Kepner.

“Unless they ask for me to be there, neither my wife or I will be attending,” the Titusville, Fla. father said in the interview published Friday, May 1.

“I’ve heard all the evidence. I saw it for myself. They have everything they need,” Christopher, 41, said, adding, “It’s going to be too painful to relive it all again.”

Anna Kepner.

Anna Kepner.

Anna Kepner/Instagram

Christopher also told the Daily Mail that he was one of the first people on the scene when his teenage daughter was found dead under her bed on the cruise last year.

“I checked her pulse. I pulled her out from under the bed,” the grieving father told the outlet. “I knew my daughter was dead long before the medical examiner got there.”

“I don’t want to be back in that room,” he added.

Anna’s father also shared that her loved ones plan to gather on what would have been her 19th birthday on June 13.

Christopher said the family will honor his daughter by enjoying some of her favorite activities and by building a butterfly garden.

“We are celebrating Anna by keeping it all about her and doing the things she liked,” he told the Daily Mail. “We want to remember Anna how she lived – and not how she died.”

In June, 16-year-old T.H. will be tried as an adult in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. He was a passenger — and shared a room with Anna — on the Horizon as it was traveling back to port in Miami when he allegedly sexually assaulted and intentionally killed her “on or about Nov. 6-7, 2025,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.

Anna’s cause of death was determined to be mechanical asphyxiation, and it was investigated as a homicide.

T.H. was arraigned and pleaded not guilty to charges of murder and aggravated sexual abuse. He faces the possibility of life in prison if convicted.

He previously appeared in federal court in Miami on Feb. 6 before he was released into the custody of a family member, a law enforcement source previously told PEOPLE. Both his mother, Shauntel, and Christopher have been very vocal about wanting to see the 16-year-old in law enforcement custody.

“At this time, it is deeply painful and disturbing to our family that the person responsible is able to walk freely,” Shauntel and Chris said in a statement at the time. “This reality adds to our grief and outrage. It is devastating to know that while we live every day with the loss of our child, the individual responsible has not yet been fully held accountable.”