In the small city of Winchester, Indiana, a grim discovery was made on the evening of April 2, 2023. Isabel Hernandez-Hernandez, a 36-year-old Hispanic female, was found lying in the front yard of a residence on East Short Street, suffering from a gunshot wound to her upper chest. Emergency services were called to the scene at approximately 7:15 p.m., and life-saving measures were administered before she was transported to Lutheran Hospital in Fort Wayne. Despite the efforts of medical personnel, Isabel succumbed to her injuries and passed away. She was born on September 24, 1986, in Veracruz, Mexico.
The investigation into her death quickly led authorities to a suspect, 25-year-old Larry J. Planck III. Initially, three individuals were taken in for questioning by the Winchester Police Department, but Planck was the one ultimately arrested and preliminarily charged with murder. He was subsequently booked into the Randolph County Jail. The investigation was a collaborative effort between the Winchester Police Department and the Indiana State Police Criminal Investigation Division.
As the legal proceedings unfolded, the initial charge of murder against Larry J. Planck III was addressed through a plea agreement with the Randolph County Prosecutor's office. He pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of reckless homicide, a Level 5 felony. For the death of Isabel Hernandez, Planck received a six-year sentence, with an additional five years added because a firearm was used in the commission of the crime, bringing the total to eleven years in prison.
The investigation into Isabel's death also unearthed a series of other serious crimes committed by Planck. While examining evidence, detectives discovered material on a hard drive belonging to him that led to numerous charges of child sexual exploitation. A jury found Planck guilty of 17 counts related to these offenses, including the promotion of child sexual exploitation. For these crimes, he received a thirty-three-year prison sentence, which he is required to serve before beginning the sentence for the reckless homicide of Isabel Hernandez.
