DELPHI — The jury is considering the evidence presented during the Delphi Murders Trial, however, after a full day of deliberations Friday, they still have not reached a verdict.
PREVIOUSLY: Delphi Murders Trial: Day 18 | Jury hears closing arguments from prosecution and defense
Special Judge Fran Gull instructed them to return to the Carroll County Courthouse Saturday morning and to work until 4:00 p.m. in an effort to make a decision.
Jurors must determine if Richard Allen kidnapped and killed Abigail Williams and Liberty German on February 13, 2017.
Closing arguments started Thursday morning as the prosecution outlined its case to the jury. Carroll County Prosecuting Attorney Nicholas McLeland worked 58 minutes to summarize and outline the state's case for the jurors. He said all they had to do was to figure out who Bridge Guy was. They say they proved it was Allen, and McLeland asked the jury to find him guilty on all charges. He said in addition to the evidence pointing to Allen's guilt, the defendant confessed to killing the girls on dozens of occasions.
Defense attorney Brad Rozzi told the jury the prosecution is desperate to prove its case, and he worked to demonstrate numerous problems with evidence presented by the state. Rozzi told the jury there are four themes when it comes to the prosecution's case: a broken timeline, what he called bumbling ballistics, false confessions, and digital forensics/data.
He told jurors, "What is most important is what they (the prosecution) don't want you to know, what we had to tell you time and time again. We had to do their job."
After a final rebuttal by the prosecution Thursday, Special Judge Fran Gull told the jury to begin its deliberations around 1:30 p.m. It worked for two hours Thursday afternoon before going back to the hotel.
The jury has been sequestered since the start of trial and will continue to be at the end each day. The judge said the jury will not work on Sunday.
