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Delphi murders trial: Jury sees video of Richard Allen accused of killing Libby German and Abby Williams in Westville jail

Harry November 3, 2024

DELPHI, Ind. — jury members Richard Allen’s double murder case More than a dozen videos of Allen while he was being held at the Westville Correctional Facility were shown Saturday.

Allen is accused of killing Libby German and Abby Williams, who were jogging in Delphi, Indiana, on February 13, 2017.

The state objected to the videos being shown in court; the defense argued that only the jury should be allowed to see them because of the “dignity” of the people involved. The defense said the video was explicit in nature.

While Judge Frances Gull ruled that the videos could be shown to the jury, the monitor showing the videos was directed away from the courtroom gallery where the media and public were seated. Allen couldn’t even see what was being shown.

The defense shared two exhibits, the camera video and a home page for the video. The home page had a “contains nudity” category.

The 10 videos were shot in April 2023 and did not contain any audio.

As reporters in the courtroom watched the videos, they noticed one of the jurors raise his eyebrows and look at Allen. Several jurors were taking notes. The juror, who had a background as a psychologist, appeared “extremely interested.”

Allen looked at his morning coffee mug. Libby’s family looked “exasperated” as the videos played. Libby’s grandmother, Becky Patty, had told prosecutor Nick McLeland during the pre-trial hearing that people were unlikely to see these videos showing Allen, but the public would be shown gruesome crime scene and autopsy photos of Libby and Abby.

Video #10 seemed to evoke the most emotion from those who could see it. Defense attorney Jennifer Auger looked deeply concerned as she watched this. At one point Auger put his head in his hands, at another he covered his mouth and finally looked away.

The defense also called Indiana State Police Investigator Doug Carter. He says he played a support role and that dozens of law enforcement agencies were initially involved in the investigation. These included the FBI, Homeland Security, U.S. Marshals Service and ATF.

The FBI’s decision to drop the case was made in August 2021, Carter said. FBI agents working on the case turned over all investigative materials.

Carter remained at the podium for less than 10 minutes.

Five more videos were shown to the jury before the day was over. Again, they were played only for the jury, prosecution and defense. The screen was removed from the public and the media.

Libby’s grandmother left the courtroom during a break. While everyone saw Libby and Abby’s sensational autopsy and crime scene photos, they were clearly upset that the videos were not shown to the public. Allen’s wife, Kathy, was also noticeably missing from court Saturday.