DELPHI — After more than seven years of waiting, family, friends, and the community of Delphi will officially have their day in court.
The family of Abigail "Abby" Williams,13, and Liberty "Libby" German, 14, will fill the seats reserved for them inside the Carroll County courtroom.
The trial for Richard Allen, the man accused of killing the Delphi teens in 2017, is set to begin Friday, October 18.
This comes after Abby and Libby were killed while on a walk at the Monon High Bridge trail on February 13, 2017, in Delphi.
What to expect
Judge Frances Gull, the special judge appointed by the Supreme Court to preside over the Delphi case, has said she will "run a tight ship."
Gull spent the evening Thursday speaking with reporters about what they should expect.
Typical days in court will begin at 9 a.m. and work to about noon with a morning break. The court will recess for lunch, Judge Gull said it will typically be 90 minutes.
The afternoon session will wrap up around 6 p.m., with a break at some point.
Some days could be longer, others shorter.
Judge Gull said she will determine when court will wrap up for the day based off of the testimony given throughout the day.
If testimony is particularly heavy or hard to hear on days, the court could wrap up early.
They will work Monday through Friday. Court will also be in session from 9 a.m. to noon. on Saturdays.
The jury will see images that might be hard to look at and hear things that might be difficult. When discussing the jury's responsibilities in an afternoon briefing with news media Gull said, "I signed up for this gross job. Those nice people [the jurors] did not."
On days when she can see the stress on jurors faces, she might take a longer break or call court into recess a little early.
Day 1:
The jury is set, and opening statements will happen on Friday.
Both the state and the prosecution will provide a road map to the jury of what to expect during the trial.
The opening statements will likely be an outline of key evidence and facts they intend to use during the trial.
What will the trial entail?
"I run a tight ship, and I intend to run this courtroom efficiently," Gull said.
The trial is expected to wrap up on November 15, but Gull has said both the state and the prosecution have indicated they might finish early.
It's no secret the days will be long and difficult, especially for the families of Abby and Libby.
Crime scene photos, evidence, testimony, and witnesses will be gone through day after day.
Both the defense and the prosecution will present their sides of what they think happened on the day Abby and Libby were killed.
Allen has denied the crime but did tell investigators he was on the Monon High Bridge that day.
There is also a key piece of evidence the prosecution will present in court.
A single unspent bullet, the prosecution says was found at the crime scene between the girl's bodies.
Detectives say it was a bullet that had been cycled through a gun owned by Allen.
RELATED | Bullet links Richard Allen to Delphi killings, documents show (wrtv.com)
Several witnesses who saw a man investigators believe was Allen on the Monon High Bridge about the time the girls disappeared are also expected to testify for the prosecution.
The prosecution is expected to use the more than 60 alleged confessions Allen made while behind bars.
Then there's the defense.
Allen's defense team will likely argue that the bullet found at the crime scene should be looked at with scrutiny.
Defense Attorney Andrew Baldwin, in court this week, called that evidence "a bunch of bunk."
They will also present numerous items of evidence, including data from Libby's cell phone.
Their claims that hair found at the crime scene in Abby's hand believed of the killer was not that of Richard Allen.
MORE | Jury selection finalized in Delphi murders trial; Trial set to begin Friday (wrtv.com)
The defense will work to discredit the confessions Allen made, citing the environment and mental state Allen was in while those confessions were made.
They also want the jury to hear their belief that there was a third-party responsible for the murders. The defense team wants the jury to hear their theory that a pagan ritualistic cult committed the crimes.
PREVIOUS | Delphi murders trial judge to hear evidence on Odinism without jury present (wrtv.com)
Over the summer, the judge ruled they would not be allowed to present their theory of the third party. She said at the time it was because there was no link proven by the defense.
However, they will have another opportunity to offer proof to the judge without the jury present.
Judge Gull issued a ruling that will allow the defense to offer evidence about their theory about possible third-party suspects, and connections between the murders and Odinism.
There are a number of items still up in the air on whether or not the jury will be allowed to see or hear them during court.
One being the composite sketches.
MORE | Prosecution doesn't want suspect sketches used in Delphi Murders trial (wrtv.com)
The prosecution wants to keep two sketches out of the trial for Allen. The composite sketches were released by the Indiana State Police early in the investigation under the notion that ISP believed they were the man responsible for the killings of Abby and Libby.
One sketch is from 2017, and the other from 2019.
Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland fears that using the sketches will confuse and mislead the jury. In court on Thursday, he argued that the sketches were not used to identify Allen as the suspect.
The defense argues the sketches should be used in open court, citing they believe their client is not the man depicted in either of the two sketches.
Gull said she is taking all their arguments under advisement and will issue a ruling before the start of the trial.
The jury will also not visit the crime scene during the trial, which is something the defense has previously asked for.
In a pre-trial hearing Thursday, the defense withdrew their motion requesting the "field trip."
RELATED | Defense withdraws request to visit crime scene, judge to hear motion on sketches (wrtv.com)
Judge Gull granted a motion that would allow prison guards, inmates, and other law enforcement to testify to Allen's alleged confessions while incarcerated. However, Gull ruled they wouldn't be able to say whether or not they found the confessions truthful.
We do expect over 50 witnesses for the state and more than 120 for the defense. That number is based on the witness list read allowed to the jury pool prior to jury selection.
In the words of Allen's defense attorney Jennifer Auger, "This is going to be a long and hard trial."
Jury expectations
12 men and women will decide the fate of Allen. They will be responsible for finding Allen guilty or not guilty on two counts of murder and two counts of murder while committing or attempting to commit kidnapping in the killings of Abby and Libby.
If Allen is convicted, he could face up to 130 years in prison.
The 12-person jury is comprised of eight women and four men.
They will be responsible for finding Allen guilty or not guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Four alternates will be on standby throughout the trial should they need to fill a juror's seat if a selected juror is unable to perform their duties.
The court is providing them with meals and transportation to and from the court.
The jurors, all from Allen County, are being housed together. The 16 of them are staying in a hotel near Delphi, where they are under close supervision of the court.
The jury is being sequestered from Allen County. Due to the high publicity of the trial, the court ruled the jurors would come from outside of Carroll County to ensure Allen had a right to a fair and unbiased jury.
"This case, because of you [the media], has generated a lot of publicity," Gull said.
The selected members all surrendered their electronics, including phones, before being sworn in on Thursday in Fort Wayne.
They then loaded a charter bus before being taken to wherever they will live for the remainder of the month-long trial.
Every one of their movements will be controlled by the courts. Bailiffs will escort them everywhere they need to go, as well as observing conversations with family.
They will not be allowed to watch television unless supervised. Judge Gull said there will likely be viewing rooms, as some jurors have requested to watch the MLB World Series.
Gull also said they have packed movies for the jurors to watch, most lighthearted "rom-coms" and not anything crime-related.
The jurors will be allowed to use their phones nightly to call home and speak with family. Several are parents, so they will likely spend time chatting with their children. Once those phone calls are complete, their phones are taken away again.
The jury will also be allowed a family day on Sundays.
As for Election Day? Gull said the court would be in session on that day and when WRTV's Kaitlyn Kendall asked if the jury would be allowed to vote, Gull said, "The court has instructed all the jurors to vote early should they want an opportunity to participate in the election. I believe those that were interested got that taken care of."
The 16 jurors were told to vote early before Thursday, Gull said. If they haven't voted, they won't.
The trial will work through Election Day and Halloween.
Who's on the jury?
Eight women and four men make up the 12-person jury.
At least two jurors have family in law enforcement, and two have served on a murder trial before. This will mark one juror's fourth jury trial.
A school counselor is also on the jury, as well as a number of jurors who have children.
A transportation director and a nurse are also on the jury.
Many of the jurors said they had heard of the case, and even seen media coverage before being selected to be on the jury. However, they all said they would keep an open mind and wouldn't allow that to have a bias while being presented evidence during trial.
Two men and two women make up the alternates.
Cameras in the courtroom?
No cameras or any electronic devices of any kind will be allowed inside the Carroll County courtroom during the duration of the trial.
This is an order that the media has requested on numerous occasions, that Judge Gull has denied, despite Indiana law citing that cameras are allowed inside the courtroom.
The media will also not be able to film any of the jurors or Allen walking into or out of the courtroom daily.
Court room expectations
Judge Gull made it clear there will be no talking during court proceedings, no food, and no drinks. No cell phones and no recording devices are allowed.
Gull cited how disruptive it can be if someone leaves in the middle of testimony, saying it's important jurors pay attention.
If someone leaves, they will not be allowed to re-enter until there is a break, or in between testimony.
The trial is set to run from October 14 through November 15.
WRTV will be inside the courtroom every step of the way until the verdict to provide updates.
