DELPHI, Ind. — Richard Allen's attorneys have revised a request asking for the judge to suppress evidence collected from his home during a search warrant connected to the Delphi killings of Abby Williams and Libby German.
Previous court documents released show a Sig Sauer Model P226 was removed from Allen's home.
The gun is particularly significant to the case as police claim testing showed a bullet found at the crime scene was cycled through that Sig Sauer Model P226.
Those previous court documents also mention how in the video from German's phone where the suspected killer can be heard saying, "down the hill" – investigators also believed they could hear the Sig Sauer Model P226 gun being cycled.
Another document showed investigators believed a knife was used in the murders of German and Williams. An autopsy revealed the girls had been killed by a "sharp object," court documents revealed.
During the search of Allen's home, 15 hunting and utility knives — some foldable and some with sheaths — were collected by investigators.
Other evidence collected includes carpet samples and swabs from the seatbelts from Allen's Ford Focus that investigators believe was seen near the trail Feb. 13, 2017.
Allen's attorneys claim Sheriff Tony Liggett made "false and misleading representations" to the judge in getting the search warrants. The attorneys also claim the state's probable cause affidavit failed to show evidence of a crime would be found in Allen's home. Specifically, the claims include the search warrant failing to establish that the items to be seized were in the home or could be expected to be found in the home. The attorneys go on to claim the search warrant listed generic items compared to the actual items that were possibly used in the crime.
The evidence prosecutors are using was listed in the release of 118 court documents by Allen County Judge Frances C. Gull.
One of those documents examined by 13News revealed prosecutors alleged Allen admitted to his wife over the phone that he killed German and Williams in 2017. He reportedly also confessed killing the girls to his mother.
That alleged confession phone call happened during a recorded call made to Allen's wife from inside Westville Correctional Facility on April 3.
"He admits several times within the phone call that he committed the offenses as charged. His wife ended the call abruptly," according to court documents.
The bodies of German and Williams were found about 0.2 miles northeast of the Monon High Bridge in Carroll County, on the north side of Deer Creek, according to the documents.
German and Williams were reportedly dropped off across from Mears Farm at 1:49 p.m. by German's sister. At 2:13 p.m., a video taken from German's phone shows the girls encountered a male subject on the southeast portion of the Monon High Bridge, according to court documents.
That video reportedly showed Williams walking down the Monon High Bridge as a man in a dark jacket and jeans walking behind her. As he approaches, one of the girls can be heard saying "gun."
Near the end of the video, the man was reportedly seen and heard on video telling the girls, "Guys, down the hill." The girls could be seen proceeding down the hill, and the video reportedly ends.
A still photograph from the video and audio was then released to the public.
Their bodies were found Feb. 14, 2017, and their clothes were also reportedly found in Deer Creek, just south of where their bodies were found. The girls' clothes were found separate from their bodies, and some articles of clothing were missing from the scene, including underwear and a sock.
There was an unspent .40 caliber round less than 2 feet away from German's body, between the girls. That round also had extraction marks on it.
The documents also reiterated previously reported information on what led detectives to arrest Allen, including information given to them by witnesses on Feb. 13, and why police believed Allen was in the woods with German and Williams after 2:13 p.m.
Allen admitted in two different interviews that he was at the bridge the afternoon the girls were killed. He said he went out on the bridge to "watch the fish," according to the documents.
Charges were filed against Allen on Oct. 28, 2022, for two counts of murder.
Cameras in the courtroom
On Sept. 13, Allen's attorneys also filed a motion to allow broadcast cameras in the courtroom during any future court appearances, including his trial.
In the motion, Allen's attorneys point to the attention the case is getting nationally and around the globe.
"The public's thirst for information in this case offers up an opportunity for transparency and the education of the public in terms of the day-to-day operations of courtrooms across the State," the motion states.
The motion points to the special judge appointed to Allen's case having taken part in a pilot program on cameras in the courtroom and found photojournalists were "professional in their coverage and presence."
Allen's attorneys listed the following additional reasons for allowing cameras in the courtroom:
- The courtroom for the trial is unusually large and could accommodate the broadcast cameras.
- Many of the witnesses, who were minors at the time of the crimes, are now adults. Very few minors will therefore be testifying. Other witnesses will be law enforcement and experts.
- Family members of the victims have already placed themselves in the public eye through social media or news coverage.
- A previous order on confidentiality was lifted.
Allen is set to go to trial in January 2024.