Thursday’s hearing in accused child killer Richard Allen’s case focused on the defense’s theories about Odinism, and whether the information should be allowed during his upcoming murder trial.
Allen’s defense team is pushing to prove that he wasn’t involved in the 2017 murders of Abigail “Abby” Williams, 13, and Liberty “Libby” German, 14. As CrimeOnline previously reported, Allen is facing four counts of murder in connection with the children’s deaths.
The girls vanished while hiking along the Monon High Bridge trail in February 2017, in Delphi. Their bodies were discovered the next day.
Allen was arrested and charged with their murders more than five years later. Since then, Allen has been in maximum security state prison.
On Thursday, Allen’s lawyers, Andrew Baldwin and Brad Rozzi, argued that several men associated with the “Norse pagan religion of Odinism” killed the girls as part of a ritualistic sacrifice. However, for the jury to consider this theory, Allen’s defense team must first prove that a direct link exists between alternate suspects and the murders.
Carroll County Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland pushed to prevent testimony regarding cult killings from reaching the jury, arguing that the claims are irrelevant and misleading.
The court also heard from a specialist in ritualistic killings, Dawn Perlmutter, who wrote a book on ritualistic crime scene investigations.
She claimed, based on her expertise, that the murders were ritualistic and linked to Odinism, adding that symbols from a Facebook post (allegedly posted by one of the suspected third parties) matched the symbols found at the crime scene.
The Facebook post was allegedly made months after the murders, raising questions about how those details could have been known.
She also described how the arrangement of branches on the victims’ bodies resembled symbolic patterns, adding that their bodies were discovered near the water with their throats cut.
Perlmutter, however, admitted that her analysis was based on limited evidence, while McLeland argued that Perlmutter reached similar conclusions a year earlier on Court TV, before examining any evidence from the Delphi case.
Maj. Patrick Cicero, of the LaPorte County Sheriff’s Office, an expert in blood spatter analysis with over 20 years of crime scene experience, also took the stand Thursday. He claimed that the blood found on a tree at the crime scene was not a ritualistic pattern, but instead, happened when one of the victim’s hands touched the tree.
“The best explanation for this pattern on the tree was from a transfer stain,” Cicero said.
Meanwhile, Judge Gull must rule on the motions heard over the past several days, including suppressing Allen’s prison confessions, incriminating statements made to a prison psychologist, reported delayed evidence disclosure, and dismissing charges due to missing evidence that could prove Allen’s innocence.
Gull is expected to issue a ruling on the hearing before jury selection, which begins in 74 days, according to WHTR.
Allen’s trial, which has been delayed multiple times, is slated to begin on October 14.
Check back for updates.
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[Featured image: Abby Williams and Libby German/Handout]
