FORT WAYNE, Ind. — Delphi murders suspect Richard Allen is now without legal representation.
A long-anticipated hearing Oct. 19 lasted about three minutes as Judge Frances Gull announced attorney Andrew Baldwin had withdrawn his representation as Allen's attorney. Attorney Bradley Rozzi is expected to give an oral withdrawal soon.
Allen is accused of killing Abigail Williams, 13, and Liberty German, 14, in February 2017. He has maintained his innocence, and is now in need of a public defender.
Gull told the court and Carroll County Prosecutor Nicholas McLleland that she would reach out to see about counsel for Allen.
Allen is still in need of a defense team and could not appear at the Fort Wayne court because he does not have representation. He has been transported back to the Indiana Department of Correction.
13 Investigates confirmed the defense team, including Rozzi and Baldwin, had so far been paid $116,736.35.
That amount had been approved for payment to the defense attorneys by Gull as of Oct. 6, 2023. It does not include any additional expenses submitted by the defense for experts or other witnesses.
Gull said the withdrawal of Allen's attorneys means Allen's murder trial will likely be pushed back and will not happen in January 2024 as anticipated.
His former team has indicated they will cooperate with successive counsel.
Gull indicated the situation was outside of their control and apologized to the court Thursday afternoon.
The announcement that Allen's defense team would not represent him comes hours after another defense attorney submitted a filing on Baldwin's behalf, arguing Baldwin should be allowed to represent Allen.
Longtime defense lawyer David Hennessy filed a memorandum Thursday morning on behalf of defense attorney Baldwin, arguing he should be able to remain counsel to Allen following a reported evidence leak at the hands of a staff member.
13News spoke with Hennessy prior to Thursday's hearing. Hennessy confirmed he was not joining Allen's case but was appearing as counsel for Baldwin. It is unclear whether Rozzi has representation.
The filing came two days after Indiana State Police investigated a leak of sensitive evidence and documents related to the case that allegedly became public at the hands of an employee on Baldwin's team.
"Attorney Baldwin did nothing wrong. He was snookered and abused," Hennessy argued in the filing.
Hennessy, a longtime defense attorney who has argued on behalf of lawyers throughout Indiana before, argued that a trusted friend to Baldwin was given access to the office space where he kept all Delphi-related items.
"He was betrayed," Hennessy wrote, arguing that Baldwin has since kept "all Delphi-related items locked in a room or a locked fireproof cabinet."
Defense counsel for Allen has reportedly put together a plan for action, which stipulates no item related to Delphi will be left unattended for even any second in any unlocked room, the filing claimed.
Hennessy called the leak a "horrible tragedy created by persons not related to the defense of Mr. Allen." Hennessy further argued Baldwin should be able to continue acting as his counsel throughout the double-murder trial.
"Mr. Allen has developed a strong and trusting bond with Mr. Baldwin. Disqualification of either of his court appointed attorneys would greatly prejudice his right to counsel and a timely trial," Hennessy said.
If the court believed some sanction was appropriate, Hennessy argued, then they should order 24 hours of representation without any compensation.