Attorneys for Delphi murder suspect Richard Allen allege he is being treated inhumanely in jail and have asked that he be moved to a different facility, WHAS-TV reports.
In a new court filing, Allen’s lawyers detailed a list of grievances they assert are unfair to their client, who still must be presumed innocent as the case against him proceeds.
Allen is reportedly being confined in a maximum security segregation unit at the state’s Westville Correctional Facility. He is allowed to shower just one or two times per week and must wear the same clothes and underwear for days, even if they are soiled, his lawyers allege.
In addition, Allen reportedly has not had an opportunity to see his wife or family in person for five months, and while he can call them using a tablet, those communications are monitored and expensive.
Jail staff also afford Allen minimal recreational time and have inhibited his ability to communicate with his attorneys and work on his defense.
The conditions, the lawyers write, are “akin to those of a prisoner of war” and he appears to be “suffering from various psychotic symptoms which counsel would describe as schizophrenic and delusional,” according to the Lafayette Journal & Courier, citing the court filing.
Allen’s “condition is deteriorating rapidly,” the lawyers wrote, according to WHAS-TV.
The lawyers are asking to move Allen to the Cass County Jail. While the prosecutor has reportedly not objected to the change, Carroll County’s Sheriff Department denied the request.
Authorities arrested Allen in October and charged him with murdering Libby German, 14, and Abigail Williams, 14, in 2017.
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[Feature Photo: Richard Allen/Carroll Circuit Court]
