CARROLL COUNTY, Indiana — The original judge on the Delphi murders case stepped down this week with just a few days notice.
Carroll County Circuit Court Judge Benjamin Diener’s last day was Tuesday, April 30.
He is currently on the ballot for the May 7 primary, running for re-election as the county’s Circuit Court judge.
On April 23, Diener notified Gov. Eric Holcomb of his plans to resign in seven days. Diener wrote, “Having served a judge for nearly twelve years, I have accomplished all of my professional goals and embrace the uncertainty of whatever comes next.”
Diener also noted that he would not be available to serve as either a senior judge or a judge pro tempore — roles where former judges often serve as temporary judges to fill various needs.
Holcomb will now appoint a judge to fill the rest of Diener’s term.
If Diener wins the primary election, does not want to run in November, and withdraws by the July 15 deadline, election rules allow the republican party to select someone to fill that vacancy on the ballot.
Diener was the original judge presiding over the case when Richard Allen was charged with murder. Investigators say Allen killed Abby Williams and Libby German in February 2017. The prosecutor filed charges against Allen in October 2022. Allen maintains he is innocent.
Diener recused himself a short time after the charges were filed and asked that a special judge be appointed. Shortly before that, in emails and court documents, Diener noted that he had concerns about the safety of his family and court staff due to intense media attention involving the case. Diener also said he and his staff had been overwhelmed with public attention and requests for information and questioned whether it was the court’s responsibility to respond to requests for information in the Delphi murders.
In a message to state court administrative staff in November 2022, Diener wrote, “I am begging for some assistance to shield me, the Court, from this storm so that I, the Court, can keep running the Court.”
