Jury selection begins Monday in Allen County, Indiana, in the double murder trial of Richard Allen, charged with killing teenagers Abby Williams, 13, and Libby German, 14, as they walked along a trail in Delphi.
Once the jury is seated, the trial will move back to Carroll County, where the murders took place on February 13, 2017, as CrimeOnline reported.
Allen County Judge Frances Gull said last year when she agreed to select the jury from Allen County, 100 miles from Delphi, that it was “painfully clear that it would be impossible to find a jury in Carroll County not involved in this case.” Keeping the trial in Carroll County, however, made sense because of the “extraordinary” expense of moving the trial from the place where witnesses and families live.
Allen, who was arrested in 2022, has pleaded not guilty and claimed that a pagan Norse cult killed the girl, but Gull last month barred the defense from presenting their Odinist sacrifice theory to the jury, as CrimOnline reported. They will be allowed to argue that their “evidence” should be admitted during the trial, however, just outside the presence of the jury.
Allen reportedly admitted killing the girls several times after his arrest, but retracted the confessions. Gull has said the prosecution will be allowed to present his statements during the trial.
The two girls disappeared while hiking on the Monon High Bridge Trail on February 13, 2017, and their bodies were found the next day. Allen was spotted near the trail on the day the girls disappeared, but said he was there to watch the fish and didn’t see or speak with anyone.
An unspent bullet found on the ground near the bodies was determined to have cycled through a gun Allen owned which he said he never loaned to anyone.
A video clip found on the phone of one of the girls showed a a man wearing a blue jacket similar to one owned by Allen, although the video did not show his face clearly. The video also included a clip of the man’s voice.
For the latest true crime and justice news, subscribe to the ‘Crime Stories with Nancy Grace’ podcast.
[Featured image: Abby Williams and Libby German/Handout]
