CARROLL COUNTY, Ind. – Prosecutors support a motion from defense lawyers to postpone the bail hearing and trial of Delphi murder suspect Richard Allen.
In a response filed Monday in Carroll Circuit Court, Carroll County Prosecutor Nick McLeland said the state didn’t object to the defense’s motion for a continuance.
On Feb. 7, Allen’s attorneys asked Judge Fran Gull to push back the Feb. 17 bail hearing and his March trial.
McLeland wrote that the state had “no objection” to setting a new date and time for the proceedings that “is convenient for all parties.”
Allen faces two counts of murder in the deaths of Abby Williams and Libby German. The state’s response to the defense motion was filed on the sixth anniversary of the girls’ disappearance on Feb. 13, 2017. Indiana State Police announced Allen’s arrest in October 2022.
In the motion requesting the continuance, the defense indicated it had a large volume of evidence to comb through, some of which had just been handed over. Allen’s attorneys expressed concerns that they wouldn’t be able to thoroughly review the material before his Feb. 17 bail hearing.
Gull had already expressed her skepticism at meeting a March 2023 trial date, given the large amount of evidence involved in the years-long investigation. While she has yet to rule on the defense’s motion, the state’s response seemed to signal a likely delay in the proceedings.
Allen’s defense team is seeking to have him released on a “reasonable bail” as he awaits trial, arguing that the evidence isn’t strong enough to keep him behind bars.
Prosecutors countered that the evidence “adds up to strong and evident proof of guilt” and believe Allen should remain in custody.
The state filed a motion of its own on Monday, calling for a protective order governing discovery material being provided to the defense. The motion seeks to prevent such materials from being exhibited to the public or viewed by anyone not authorized to do so, including “witnesses, family members, relatives and friends of the Defendant.”
Authorized individuals would include Allen, his attorneys and any investigators or experts for the defense.
