CARROLL COUNTY, Ind. – Prosecutors in the Delphi murder trial are asking the court to prevent the defense from presenting its alternative murder theory in court.
In a motion in limine, filed Monday, Carroll County Prosecutor Nick McLeland asked Special Judge Fran Gull to bar Richard Allen’s attorneys from mentioning the theory or anything “not supported by admissible evidence.”
The request applies to jury selection, opening arguments, presentation of evidence at trial, and closing arguments.
Allen is charged with murder in the February 2017 deaths of Abby Williams and Libby German near the Monon High Bridge. Police announced his arrest in October 2022. Since then, the case has been mired in legal back-and-forth. The trial is scheduled to start next month.
In their September 2023 memorandum for a Franks hearing, defense attorneys Brad Rozzi and Andrew Baldwin suggested Odinists were responsible for killing the girls as part of a sacrificial rite. McLeland dismissed the theory as “fanciful.”
Odinism is a version of a Norse pagan religion that has been coopted in recent years by white supremacist groups. The defense claimed adherents, not Allen, were behind the killings.
McLeland’s motion sought to bar the defense from mentioning the theory during the trial and jury selection. McLeland asked that certain terms be off limits, including “Odinism” and “cult or ritualistic killing.” The state also listed the names of several people who have been linked to the case in one way or another.
McLeland argued that, in order to introduce a third party, the defense “must show some connection between the 3rd party and the crime.”
McLeland also sought to suppress references to the investigation conducted by Todd Click, a Rushville officer who investigated the Odinism angle, as well as geofencing issues not directly related to the case.
“Burden is on the opponent to show why it is relevant” is an oft-used line in the filing. The state argued raising these issues could create confusion or prejudice the jury.
In a separate filing, the state responded to a defense motion to have an Oct. 26, 2022, police interview with Allen thrown out. Allen’s attorneys argued that the interview was not voluntary, and that Allen was not advised of his rights before talking to an investigator.
But McLeland asked the court to deny the defense motion, stating that Allen voluntarily sat for an interview with police and was not coerced into talking to investigators.
