Accused Delphi killer Richard Allen confessed more than 60 times to killing two children in 2017, according to testimony Wednesday.
Allen returned to court for a second day of hearings Wednesday in Carroll County. The hearing centered on motions from Allen’s defense team to suppress incriminating statements he made while incarcerated at the Westville Correctional Facility in Indiana.
On Wednesday, the prosecution said it had numerous confessions from Allen to present to a jury, supported by multiple witnesses’ testimonies during the hearing.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Allen is facing four counts of murder for the deaths of Abigail “Abby” Williams and Liberty “Libby” German. The girls vanished while hiking along the Monon High Bridge trail in February 2017, in Delphi.
Their bodies were discovered the next day.
Allen, a local resident and pharmacist, was arrested and charged with their murders more than five years later. Since then, Allen has been in maximum security state prison.
Former Westville warden John Galipeau testified Wednesday about the isolation unit Allen was held as at. Galipeau described it as “a prison inside a prison,” according to the Indy Star. The unit is typically reserved for those requiring close supervision.
Prosecutors requested housing Allen in a prison rather than the county jail, as the sheriff said they didn’t have enough staff at the local jail to ensure Allen’s safety.
Galipeau said Allen was placed there by top IDOC administrators to be monitored under the prison’s suicide watch protocols.
While outside Allen’s cell, both inmates and guards reported hearing him confess to the Delphi murders. Galipeau testified. He said that Allen also confessed directly to him during one of the warden’s visits to Allen’s cell block.
“He confessed,” Galipeau told Special Judge Fran Gull.
Stacy Diener, a prosecutor on the case, said Wednesday that Allen made 61 incriminating statements over a two-month period, including confessions to his wife, mother, and inmates assigned to him while on suicide watch.
Indiana State Police detective Brian Harshman, who was tasked with reviewing reports, videos, and phone calls involving Allen during his incarceration, testified that the defendant had made “60-plus direct confessions.”
Harshman noted that some of the confessions had specific details about the Delphi murders that only the killer would, as well as the motive behind the crimes.
Defense attorney Brad Rozzi argued that the confessions were coerced, citing improper policies and intentional actions by investigators and prison staff that violated Allen’s constitutional rights.
The defense said Wednesday that they wanted to withdraw a second motion to suppress statements Allen made to investigators on the day he was arrested.
Gull is expected to issue a ruling on the hearing in the coming days.
Allen’s trial, which has been delayed multiple times, is slated to begin in October. Check back for updates.
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[Feature Photo: Abby and Libby/Handout]
