Richard Allen’s defense team continues pushing alternate Odinism theory in Delphi double murders case

DELPHI, Ind. — The defense team representing Richard Allen in the Delphi double murders case wants the special judge assigned to the case to reconsider allowing them to present evidence of third-party suspects at a trial scheduled to begin next week.

Allen is charged with four counts of murder in the February 2017 deaths of Abby Williams and Libby German near the Monon High Bridge in Delphi. Indiana State Police announced his arrest in October 2022, more than five years after the girls were killed.

Special Judge Fran Gull – assigned to the case out of Allen County – previously ruled against Allen’s defense team’s request to share an alternate theory about how and why the young girls were murdered.

Defense attorneys Andrew Baldwin and Bradley Rozzi are now pushing back on that ruling.

In a motion filed Friday in Carroll County Circuit Court, the defense said they intend to make an “offer of proof” at the trial, for which jury selection begins on Monday. An offer of proof is a motion to explain why evidence that has been objected to by a judge should actually be allowed.

The defense writes that they want to be able to speak about third-party suspects in the highly-publicized case, including its theory that the killings were part of a ritualistic act committed by followers of a Pagan religion known as Odinism.

Baldwin and Rozzi are now asking that Judge Gull grant their motion to allow the Odinism evidence to be presented. They say that granting this motion will save the trial – which has already been pushed back several times – from suffering further delays.

“Granting this motion would serve the cause of judicial efficiency, as the Defendant’s offer of proof would otherwise cause a significant delay in the trial if the Defendant were required to present the same evidence into the record at trial for purposes of the offer of proof,” the motion reads.

This was not the only motion filed by Allen’s defense team on Friday. The attorneys also filed a motion in limine request Friday morning to deny the appearance of certain witnesses at the trial – specifically prison guards at the facility where Allen was previously held.

In the filing, Rozzi and Baldwin say prison guards and IDOC staff from both the Westville Correctional Facility and Wabash Valley Correctional Facility are going to be brought forward as witnesses. They state that these witnesses will likely be asked to speak on the veracity of alleged confessions made by Allen while being held in prison.

In the motion, the attorneys argue that such testimony would violate Rule 701 of the Indiana Rules of Evidence because these witnesses are not experts on mental health and are not qualified to make such decisions.

“The witnesses do not have sufficient life experiences that would permit making a judgment as to the mental state of Defendant Allen,” the lawyers wrote.

This comes after Judge Gull ruled in August that the alleged confessions to doctors, jail staff and family would be admissible in court. For more on that, click here.

Furthermore, in a second motion filed Friday morning, the defense team says they intend to bring on an out-of-state witness to testify on their behalf at trial. Specifically, the lawyers are asking that a psychologist who was employed by IDOC’s third-party mental health provider be allowed to testify.

The attorneys argue that the psychologist testified in pre-trial hearings regarding Allen’s mental health and the veracity of his confessions while being detained in IDOC facilities. They said they intend to file court orders to request that the doctor be brought in from Cook County, Illinois to speak as a material witness.

For a more in-depth look at the murders of Williams and German, the ensuing police investigation and the eventual arrest of Allen, click here.