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Delphi waits for verdict in double murder trial of Richard Allen

As jury deliberation begins, a community is eager to end an almost eight-year-long nightmare.

DELPHI, Ind. — The street lights surrounding the Carroll County Courthouse were wrapped in blue and purple ribbon on Thursday, Nov. 7.

They're meant to represent the favorite colors of Abby Williams and Libby German, who were killed in Delphi in February 2017.

As of Thursday afternoon, jury trial for the man charged in their deaths, Richard Allen, is now in the hands of a 12-person jury.

"I think we all want justice," Piper Hanan of Noblesville said. "I think that would be the ideal endpoint."

RELATED: Jury begins deliberation | Day 18 of Delphi murders trial for suspect Richard Allen

Hanan said she has camped outside the courthouse "on and off" since the trial started.

"I came up by myself," Hanan said.

She said she hopes to secure one of the few public seats inside the courtroom in the final days of the double murder trial.

"Unfortunately, even if you spend the night and sleep in the cold and rain," Hanan said, "you aren't even guaranteed to get in."

Credit: WTHR/Scott Allen
A photo of the Carroll County courthouse in Delphi, Indiana, on Oct. 29, 2024.

Hanan, like so many others, said she has followed the 2017 case from the beginning.

"It's attracted crowds for a long time," Hanan said. "Over time, we just all, in the community, become invested in seeing in through to the end."

Outside the courthouse, other people hold signs as they wait for a spot inside.

One reads, "Allen is innocent."

Another says, "Justice for Abby and Libby."

A third reads, "Disbar Judge Gull."

Another, brought in by a Carmel woman, reads, "The world is watching."

Credit: WTHR
A woman from Carmel brought this sign to hold outside the Carroll County Courthouse during the Delphi murders trial.

The jury left the courthouse just after 3:30 p.m. Thursday. They are expected to continue deliberations Friday at 9 a.m.

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