- Richard Allen, who is serving a 130-year prison sentence for the 2017 murders of teenagers Abigail Williams and Liberty German in Delphi, Indiana , is asking the Indiana Court of Appeals to overturn his 2024 convictions.
- Allen's defense attorneys argue that his confessions were false statements made during a psychological crisis caused by solitary confinement, and that the trial judge unfairly prevented them from presenting a defense theory involving a Norse pagan ritual sacrifice.
- Prosecutors counter that Allen's confessions were genuine and began before he displayed signs of mental illness, arguing that confronting the evidence against him forced Allen to admit to the killings.
- State attorneys maintain that ample evidence supports the guilty verdict, including an unspent bullet discovered between the victims' bodies that expert testimony linked to Allen's handgun.
- The defense appeal also highlights the absence of Allen's DNA or fingerprints at the crime scene, inconsistencies in police suspect sketches, and limits placed on challenging the ballistics evidence at trial.
IN FULL
Delphi killer challenges 130-year sentence over confessions and Odin murder theory
