INDIANAPOLIS — An Indiana man has been sentenced to a maximum of 130 years in prison for the 2017 murders of two teenage girls who disappeared during a winter hike. This case has significantly impacted the small community of Delphi, where the girls lived.
Richard Allen, aged 52, was found guilty of killing 13-year-old Abigail Williams and 14-year-old Liberty German by a jury on November 11. The jury convicted him of two counts of murder and two counts of committing murder while attempting to kidnap. During the sentencing, which took place on a Friday, Allen County Superior Court Judge Fran Gull imposed a 65-year sentence for each murder count, which will be served consecutively. The sentencing session lasted under two hours and included emotional statements from relatives of the victims.
Following the conclusion of the hearing, Allen’s defense attorney, Jennifer Auger, indicated plans to appeal the decision and request a new trial, stating that the events the families endured were unimaginable. She mentioned that the defense would provide further information in due course but felt that the current moment was not appropriate for detailed comments.
Allen, maintaining his innocence, faced a potential prison term ranging from 45 to 130 years for the murders of the girls, whose bodies were discovered in February 2017, one day after they went missing while on a school break. He resided in Delphi, and at the time of his arrest in October 2022, he worked as a pharmacy technician near the courthouse where he was later tried. His trial was delayed multiple times due to evidence leaks, the withdrawal of his public defenders, and their subsequent reinstatement by the Indiana Supreme Court.
The case attracted considerable media and public interest, especially from true-crime fans due to its complex evidence. After the sentencing, a news conference was held by law enforcement officials, who expressed gratitude to the investigators whose efforts led to Allen’s capture and prosecution. Carroll County Sheriff Tony Liggett remarked that justice had been achieved.
One critical piece of information that facilitated the investigation’s breakthrough came from Kathy Shank, a retired government worker. She volunteered to help police organize incoming tips, and in doing so, discovered a critical lead that implicated Allen. Shank revealed in court that she found a misplaced document that included a man who had contacted authorities shortly after the girls’ bodies were found, recognizing that the name had been inaccurately recorded.
Liggett specifically commended Shank for her role in uncovering evidence that ultimately linked Allen to the murders. He described how diligently she brought new information to the investigators, which significantly contributed to the resolution of the case.
During the news conference, Mike Patty, German’s grandfather, expressed gratitude toward the jury, investigators, prosecutors, and Judge Gull while a heartwarming photo of the two girls was displayed. He asserted that justice had been served for them.
The trial, which was comprised of a jury of seven women and five men, began on October 18 in Delphi, a town with a population of around 3,000, about 60 miles northwest of Indianapolis. The jury was secluded throughout the trial, which faced multiple setbacks, including evidence leaks and changes in legal representation.
On February 13, 2017, a relative had dropped the girls off at a hiking trail near Delphi. After they failed to meet at the predetermined pick-up point that evening, they were reported missing, and their bodies were found the next day in a forested area.
In the closing arguments at trial, Carroll County Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland described Allen as someone who had forced the girls off the trail while armed, intending initially to commit a heinous act before altering his plan and murdering them. McLeland indicated that an unspent bullet was recovered between the victims’ bodies, linking it to Allen’s .40-caliber Sig Sauer handgun, and emphasized the credibility of testimony from an Indiana State Police firearms expert.
Furthermore, he presented evidence capturing Allen’s presence in a grainy cellphone video taken by German, which showed Allen following the girls across a bridge, along with audio that included him instructing them to go “down the hill.” The prosecutor also highlighted that Allen had confessed several times, including in various recorded conversations.
The defense contended that these confessions were unreliable, citing Allen’s mental health struggles during confinement, which they argued could cause delirium and psychosis. Allen’s attorney, Bradley Rozzi, raised doubts about identifying him as the individual seen near the trail, noting the absence of any DNA, fingerprints, or other forensic evidence linking Allen to the crime scene.
