Jury Deliberates the Fate of Indiana Man Accused in 2017 Murder of 2 Teenage Girls
INDIANAPOLIS—The jury deliberated on Thursday in the case of an Indiana man facing murder charges for the 2017 killings of two teenage girls who disappeared during a hike near their small hometown.
Richard Allen, 52, is charged with two counts of murder and two additional counts of murder while committing or attempting to commit kidnapping in the deaths of Abigail Williams, 13, and Liberty German, 14. He could potentially face up to 130 years in prison if convicted on all charges.
The jury, composed of seven women and five men, started deliberations Thursday afternoon following closing arguments in the lengthy murder trial. Deliberations lasted about two hours and will resume the next morning.
Carroll County Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland informed the jurors that Allen is the individual seen in a blurry cellphone video captured by one of the girls, known as Abby and Libby, as they crossed an abandoned railroad bridge just before they vanished on Feb. 13, 2017.
“Richard Allen is Bridge Guy,” McLeland told the jurors, alleging that Allen kidnapped and later killed the girls.
He emphasized that Allen had confessed multiple times to the murders—verbally, over the phone, and in writing. In one of the recordings played for the jury, Allen can be heard admitting to his wife, “I did it. I killed Abby and Libby.”
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The defense team raised doubts about the validity of the confessions by presenting witnesses, including a psychiatrist who claimed that Allen was delirious and psychotic due to months spent in solitary confinement.
Attorney Bradley Rozzi concluded by asserting Allen’s innocence, pointing out that no witness definitively identified Allen as the individual observed on the hiking trail or the bridge on the day the girls disappeared. The defense also mentioned the lack of fingerprint, DNA, or forensic evidence linking Allen to the crime scene.
In this courtroom sketch, Richard Allen (L) is seated next to one of his defense attorneys Andrew Baldwin inside a courtroom at the Carroll County Courthouse in Delphi, Ind., on Nov. 2, 2024. Li Buszka via AP, Pool
Even after the girls’ deaths, Allen continued to reside in Delphi for over five years while employed at a local pharmacy, indicating his innocence, according to the defense.
The highly publicized case has faced several delays, including issues with leaked evidence, changes in Allen’s legal representation, and a gag order. The 12 jurors, along with alternates, were sequestered throughout the trial that commenced on Oct. 18 in Delphi.
In his closing argument, McLeland reiterated evidence suggesting that a bullet found near the girls’ bodies was linked to Allen’s handgun. The defense contested this claim, citing expert testimony that challenged the state police analysis.
McLeland also mentioned a state trooper who identified Allen’s voice on German’s cellphone video directing the girls “Down the hill” after crossing the bridge. He alleged that Allen, armed with a gun, coerced the girls off the trail with intentions of rape, but changed his plans due to a passing van.
The defense introduced a digital forensics expert raising doubts about the state’s timeline, which indicated the girls were killed and left in the woods around 2:32 p.m. The defense suggested that other individuals might have been involved in the abduction and subsequent events.
Prosecutors pointed to Allen’s confessions as crucial evidence, claiming the information disclosed could only be known by the killer. However, the defense argued that Allen’s mental health crisis during isolation rendered his confessions unreliable.
Before the trial, Allen’s legal team intended to argue that the girls were sacrificed in a ritual by a white nationalist group known as the Odinists, but this argument was dismissed by the judge.
By Rick Callahan
