DELPHI, Ind.(WXIN) – After taking the case Thursday, jurors in the Delphi murders trial found Richard Allen guilty of murder on Monday.

The verdict meant jurors found the state’s evidence — including a bullet that an expert found matched Allen’s gun and his prison confessions — compelling enough to convict him.

They were less impressed by the defense’s claim that the investigation was sloppy and Allen’s confessions were false.

Allen was charged with two counts of murder and two additional counts of murder while committing or attempting to commit kidnapping in the February 2017 deaths of Abby Williams and Libby German near the Monon High Bridge. The jury found Allen guilty on all counts.

Allen’s wife and mother began to cry as the jury read the verdict. The victims’ families did the same with Abby Williams and Libby German.

Allen’s sentencing will be at 9 a.m. on December 20.

Daily summary of the Delphi murders case

During the trial, the state established Allen’s guilt: A crime lab technician matched a bullet found at the scene to Allen’s gun; a camera captured Allen’s car near the murder scene; He admitted that he was on the bridge the day of the murders; and confessed to the crime dozens of times, including in prison phone calls to his wife and mother.

The defense countered that the state had no DNA, social media or digital forensic evidence linking Allen to the crime. They also said his time in solitary confinement warped his mind and led to false confessions.

The defense also claimed that the state had hindered the investigation from the beginning.

The trial began with jury selection on October 14 in Allen County. Because of the high profile of the case and its importance to central Indiana, Special Judge Fran Gull decided to pull jurors from Allen County. Because the murders occurred in Carroll County and several key witnesses and investigators lived near or around Delphi, the trial was held at the Carroll County Courthouse.

The trial began with opening statements on October 18. That same day, the state called its first witnesses: Abby’s and Libby’s family members. Prosecutor Nick McLeland and his team spent 12 days presenting evidence, including gruesome crime scene photographs, and building a case against Allen. The defense withdrew its plea on November 6.

How did Allen become the prime suspect?

Allen contacted police in February 2017 and said he was on the Monon High Bridge the day of the murders. He spoke with a DNR officer and said he was in the area between 1:30 and 3:30 p.m.

However, the report form was misfiled and mislabeled. It wasn’t until September 2022 that a volunteer who organized clues about the Delphi murders came across the report and brought it to the attention of investigators. They decided to take a closer look at Allen.

By this point, the case had been going on for almost six years without an arrest. Investigators asked Allen where he was; He said he was on the bridge around 12:00 and left around 13:30 on February 13, 2017. He was driving a black 2016 Ford Focus SE that investigators believe they spotted on a security camera at the Hoosier Harvest Store. Allen said he wore a Carhartt jacket and jeans that day; The same clothes worn by the “Bridge Guy”.

His interview led investigators to apply for a search warrant. They went to Allen’s home, searched his car and seized various items: numerous electronic devices, knives, box cutters and a Sig Sauer P226 pistol. Investigators said the gun used the same caliber bullet as the one found at the murder scene.

An entire day of testimony was dedicated to former state police lab technician Melissa Oberg, who examined the “unspent bullet” and eventually matched it to Allen’s Sig Sauer. He said the bullet lodged in Allen’s gun. Allen could not explain how the bullet from his gun ended up at the scene of the murder.

Digital forensics played a big role in the case, as investigators obtained video from Libby German’s phone of the man who would become known as the “Bridge Guy.” In the analysis made on the phone, it was determined that the movement was stopped at 14.32. The state believes the girls were killed around this time.

Following his arrest, Allen was taken to Westville Correctional Facility. He was kept in solitary confinement but eventually made a series of confessions. He told his mother and wife that he killed Abby Williams and Libby German. He said he threw the cutter in the CVS dumpster. He wrote a letter to the warden confessing to the Delphi murders.

His most detailed confession was made by Dr. Dr., a prison psychologist at Westville Correctional Center. Forwarded it to Monica Wala. He told her that his motive was sexual and that he threatened the girls with a gun and forced them down the hill. He said that before he sexually assaulted anyone, he saw a van and it surprised him. He ordered the girls to cross Deer Creek and killed them, she said.

The state relied heavily on the gunshot evidence and Allen’s confessions in making its case.

As a result, the defense responded by attempting to suppress the state’s evidence and casting doubt on the veracity of Allen’s confessions.

Allen’s defense fought back

Allen’s treatment in Westville became a central theme, and the defense showed jurors more than a dozen videos of Allen taken while in custody. In some videos he was naked and wearing a hood. He was seen eating his own feces and smearing it on the walls. Sometimes he would hit his head against the cell wall.

Defense expert Dr. Stuart Grassian stated that staying in solitary confinement for a long time can have a negative impact on a person’s mental state. It can even lead to false confessions. Allen’s attorneys made clear in court that they believed Allen’s confessions, while not coerced, were false confessions made by a man physically and mentally exhausted by the difficult circumstances in which he lived.

The defense also blasted the investigation into the Delphi murders, questioning why state investigators eventually removed the Federal Bureau of Investigation from the case and pointing out a series of procedural blunders that plagued the investigation from day one.

Many witness interviews from the early days of the investigation were deleted due to DVR error. The defense argued that these interviews could have important evidence and that losing them would weaken the initial investigation.

Even the state’s digital forensic examination has come under fire. The state’s experts could not explain why notifications and messages were suddenly sent to Libby German’s phone at 4:34 a.m. on February 14, 2017. The state said the phone was not moving at all after 2:32 p.m., when activity tracking data showed it had stopped. Definitely.

Stacey Eldridge, a former FBI forensic investigator, said her analysis found that the auxiliary port on Libby’s phone was active until 5:45 p.m. someone put a jack in this – and 22:32 – when someone unplugged the device.

His claim confused the state, and one expert said water or dirt may have entered the port. He later admitted that he had searched Google during a court recess to quickly find a possible explanation.

The defense also criticized the gunshot evidence and expert Dr. Eric Warren stated that he disagreed with Oberg’s findings. He said Oberg compared an unspent bullet to a test shot from Allen’s gun. He said it was an “apples-to-oranges” comparison.

The defense said there was no DNA or digital evidence linking Allen to the crime. Investigators found no trace of any items seized from Allen’s home or car.

The defense also questioned the credibility of some state witnesses; these included key “Bridge Guy” witness and former Delphi cop Steve Mullin, who had controversial exchanges due to his use of the words “muddy” and “bloody” during cross-examination. The chief and current investigator for the Carroll County Prosecutor’s Office, who is accused of lacking thoroughness in his investigation and trying to influence Allen on which route to use to pursue the trail on Feb. 13, 2017.

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