DELPHI, INDIANA — The start of the Delphi murders trial was delayed by 10 minutes.
The court confiscated five still cameras and one video camera belonging to four media members for taking photos and videos of the jury entering the courthouse, which is a violation of the judge’s order.
Special Judge Frances Gull instructed the media Thursday afternoon that photographs and videos of the jury were strictly prohibited as they exited and entered the Carroll County Courthouse.
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The jury is comprised of seven women and five men, and there are four alternates, three women and one man.
Note: WRTV originally reported the jury was made up of eight women and four men with two women and two men as alternates.
More than 60 people waited in line outside the courthouse to get a seat in the courtroom. Some of them waited overnight for a chance at one of the 27 seats available to the public.
Members of Abby Williams' and Libby German’s family were in court Friday morning, as well as members of Richard Allen’s family.
9 a.m.
Once the court opened, opening statements lasted about an hour. During this time, the defense repeatedly told the jurors “Richard Allen is innocent.” The defense also said the girls were injured with two different knives. The prosecution told them there was plenty of evidence that would show Allen killed Williams and German in February 2017 near the Delphi High Bridge.
11 a.m.
After a brief recess, the court resumed with the first witness being called to the stand a few minutes past 11:00 a.m.
Judge Gull did make a ruling today about the use of sketches that were circulated as law enforcement officials searched for the person wanted in the murder case. Judge Gull determined the sketches will not be allowed as evidence in the trial of Richard Allen.
READ MORE | Prosecution doesn't want suspect sketches used in Delphi Murders trial (wrtv.com)
The first witness called to the stand was Becky Patty, the grandmother of German. She was on the stand for about an hour Friday morning.
German and Williams disappeared on February 13, 2017, near Delphi. The bodies of the girls were found the next day near the High Bridge along a trail in Carroll County.
Patty was very emotional as she testified about her granddaughter. She had to stop several times because she was crying.
She talked about German and how she and Williams were best friends who spent a tremendous amount of time together. Patty told the court the girls were at her house on February 13 because they had a day off school.
Patty says German’s older sister, Kelsi, took them to the trail that afternoon, and German’s dad was supposed to pick them up at 3:30 p.m. When he got there, the girls were nowhere to be found.
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Patty testified they tried calling the girls on their cell phones, and despite the fact German always had her cell phone with her, neither girl answered the repeated calls.
Patty says she called Williams’ mother to let her know they could not get in touch with the girls and search parties started to look for them. The bodies of the girls were found the next morning by members of the search party.
The defense attorney for Allen cross-examined Patty and wanted to know about how vocal German was. They also wanted to know from Patty about flashlights used by search parties on the evening of February 13 as they searched for the girls.
12:30 p.m.
The court recessed for lunch just before 12:30 p.m. and will resume at 1:30 p.m. when the prosecution calls its second witness.
The following sketch from inside the courtroom was released Friday afternoon.
1:30 p.m.
The second witness called to the stand was Kelsi Siebert, German’s older sister. She was on the stand for approximately 90 minutes answering questions about the day the girls disappeared.
She spoke about German’s personality, saying she was outgoing, brave and always there for those who needed her.
“She was more like my best friend than my sister,” Siebert said of German.
Siebert said she drove German and Williams to the area of the Delphi High Bridge where they wanted to walk along the trail during a day off of school. She testified about what the girls were wearing that day and how they were taking photos in the car.
The jury was shown a video that showed the drop-off area where Siebert stopped to let the girls out of the car. The video also showed the jury what the trail looked like.
3:00 p.m.
German's father, Derrick German, took the stand as a witness for the prosecution. He said he went to the trail to pick up his daughter and Williams at around 3:30 p.m. on February 13, 2017.
The girls were not there, so he said he called German’s cell phone. She did not answer, which he said was rare. He called again. She did not answer, and he started to get worried. He started looking for the girls and eventually left to reach out to family to ask them to help look for the girls as well.
The prosecution entered four pieces of evidence Friday afternoon.
One was a selfie of the girls taken in Siebert’s car that afternoon. The second photo was a birdseye view of the trail, and the third photo was a closer view of the same area.
A video played in the courtroom showed the drop-off point where the girls got out of Siebert’s car as well as the trail near the Delphi High Bridge.
4:00 p.m.
Anna Williams, the mother of Abby Williams was called by the state of Indiana to testify for the prosecution Friday afternoon. She spent about 20 minutes on the stand.
She talked about her daughter and who she was. She was emotional and cried several times, particularly when she was asked by the prosecution to "tell me a little bit about Abby."
Anna Williams described her daughter as a "very kind little girl who was helpful, kind and smart. She was quiet and reserved, but she always asked, 'How can I help?'"
When asked about her daughter's friends, she said Williams had a small group of friends, and many of them were from her sports teams. She said her daughter was a bit shy and reserved, but said Williams was more open and talkative around her friends.
Anna Williams was asked if Abby was a risk-taker, and she answered that Abby loved rollercoasters and that height did not scare her.
The state asked Anna Williams about the evening of February 13. Anna Williams testified that she was at work at a local restaurant when she received a phone call about the fact they couldn't find her daughter and German. She told her boss "I don't know what these girls are up to, but I will be back."
4:30 p.m.
The final witness on day one of the trial was Carroll County Sheriff's Department Deputy Mitch Catron. He was asked about what happened on the evening of February 13 after the girls were reported missing.
He says he searched the trail briefly, but he also interviewed a gentleman named Mr. Webber who owns a home near the trail.
Upon cross-examination, Deputy Catron said he only spent about five to seven minutes searching the trail. That led defense attorneys to ask why he didn't search longer, asking where he searched, and why he didn't look other places.
While Deputy Catron's testimony was expected to be lengthy, it lasted less than 30 minutes.
The jury did ask a couple of questions. They asked the deputy how often people walk the trail and then turn around without crossing the Delphi High Bridge. He answered simply, "I don't know."
5:30 p.m.
Court was dismissed around 5:30 p.m. The second day of the trial will start at 9 a.m. Saturday for a session that is expected to last about three hours.
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