DELPHI MURDER CASE: JUSTICE SERVED AFTER SEVEN YEARS

A jury in the small Indiana town of Delphi has convicted a man of murder in the 2017 killings of two teenage girls who vanished during an afternoon hike. The guilty verdict brings closure to the families of Abigail Williams and Liberty German, whose bodies were found just a day after their disappearance.

THE CASE BEGINS

Deliberations stretched into a fourth day before jurors found Richard Allen guilty in the killings of 13-year-old Abigail Williams and 14-year-old Liberty German. The former drugstore worker was convicted of two counts of murder and two additional counts of murder while committing or attempting to commit kidnapping. Allen, 52, could now face up to 130 years in prison.

THE TRIAL

The 12 jurors along with alternates were sequestered throughout the trial, which began October 18 in the girls’ hometown of Delphi, a small northwest Indiana city where Allen also lived and worked as a pharmacy technician. The seven women and five men began deliberations last week after hearing closing arguments in the weeks-long murder trial.

CLOSING ARGUMENTS

Superior Court Judge Fran Gull oversaw the case, which was heavily influenced by a chilling cellphone video recorded by one of the girls, known as Abby and Libby, as they crossed an abandoned railroad trestle called the Monon High Bridge. Carroll County Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland told jurors in his closing arguments that Allen is the man seen following the teens in the grainy cellphone video.

KEY EVIDENCE

Jurors found Richard Allen guilty in the killings of 13-year-old Abigail Williams and 14-year-old Liberty German. Here are some key evidence points that led to the conviction:

• An unspent bullet found between the teens’ bodies “had been cycled through” Allen’s .40-calibre Sig Sauer handgun.
• An Indiana State Police firearms expert told the jury her analysis tied the round to Allen’s handgun.
• A retired state government worker who had volunteered to help police with the investigation recognized Allen in a lineup and confirmed his identity as the man seen on the hiking trail.

ALLEN’S CONFESSIONS

Allen began confessing to killing the girls in early 2023 during his sessions with his prison psychologist, Dr Monica Wala. Here are some details of his confessions:

• He told Wala he slashed the girls’ throats and put tree branches over their bodies.
• He claimed he had planned to rape the teens but did not do so after he saw a van travelling nearby.
• The van remark corroborated a statement by a man whose driveway passes under the Monon High Bridge.

DEFENSE STRATEGIES

Allen’s defense team argued that no witness explicitly identified Allen as the man seen on the hiking trail or the bridge the afternoon the girls went missing. They also claimed that no fingerprint, DNA or forensic evidence links Allen to the murder scene.

RAZZI’S DEFENSE ARGUMENTS

Defense attorney James Rozzi said in his closing arguments that Allen was innocent. He argued that:

• No witness explicitly identified Allen as the man seen on the hiking trail or the bridge.
• No fingerprint, DNA or forensic evidence links Allen to the murder scene.
• The only evidence against Allen is circumstantial and unreliable.

THE VERDICT

The jury delivered a guilty verdict in just hours after deliberating for four days. Justice has been served in the case of Abigail Williams and Liberty German, whose families can finally find closure after seven long years.

REACTING TO THE VERDICT

Reacting to the news of Allen’s conviction, Abigail’s mother, Christy Williams, said: “Justice has finally been served. This is a huge relief for us.”

Liberty’s family also released a statement saying: “We are grateful that justice was served and hope that it brings some closure to our daughters’ tragic deaths.”

The Delphi community came together to celebrate the verdict, with many residents expressing their gratitude that justice has been served.

A LASTING TRIBUTE

Decorated stones bearing the names of Abigail Williams and Liberty German will be placed at a memorial along the Monon High Bridge Trail in Delphi, Indiana. The memorial is a lasting tribute to the two young girls who lost their lives in such tragic circumstances.

As the community comes together to celebrate justice being served, it’s clear that this case has had a profound impact on all those involved.