Judge issues gag order in Delphi murder case
Hearing set for Jan. 13 to discuss further revelations by prosecution, defense
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The day after Richard Allen’s attorneys posted a press release response to the court’s release of the probable cause affidavit, Carroll County Superior Court Judge Francis Gull shut down any more public discussion of the case with a gag order.
Allen, a resident of Delphi, was arrested on Oct. 28 for the murders of Liberty “Libby” German and Abigail “Abby” Williams, whose bodies were found on a hiking trail near Delphi in February 2017
Gull has scheduled a hearing to discuss the gag order that accordingly bars, “Parties counsel, Law enforcement officials, Court personnel, Coroner and Family members from Disseminating Information or Releasing Any Extra-Judicial Statements of Public Communication in whole pending hearing which the Court has scheduled for Jan. 13, 2023, at 10 a.m. in the Carroll Circuit Court.”
The judge had ruled against a request by Carroll County Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland to not release the original probable cause affidavit, and on Nov. 29 released a redacted version in answer to a public access brief filed by various news organizations requesting access to the affidavit and charging information.
After the redacted affidavit’s release to the media, Allen’s attorneys, Brad Rozzi and Andrew Baldwin, sent out a rebuttal to evidence noted in the State’s document stating,
“Rick’s ability to assert his innocence has been reduced to only one short, post-hearing press conference,” the attorneys wrote. “Accordingly, we feel it appropriate, necessary, and within the bounds of our rules of professional conduct to make a few comments concerning the probable cause affidavit and Rick’s innocence.”
The probable cause affidavit revealed previously unknown information, such as the State’s claim of Allen’s car being seen on video the day of the teens’ disappearance, and an unspent bullet found near the bodies of the girls when they were discovered that law enforcement stated had been ejected from Allen’s Sig Sauer .40 caliber pistol. Rozzi and Baldwin’s press release questioned those pieces of evidence and the methods the prosecution followed during the over five-year murder investigation.
Rozzi and Baldwin both stated, “We have received multiple requests from local and national media for interviews and comment since the unsealing of the probable cause affidavit … We do not want to try this case in the media, and we intend to adhere to the Indiana Rules of Professional Conduct that provide guidance on pretrial publicity.”