Richard Allen's murder trial continues with closing arguments Thursday

Both the prosecution and defense were heard Richard Allen’s murder trial The stage is being set for closing arguments on Thursday in Delphi, Indiana.

Allen, 52, is accused of killing two teenagers who went missing on Feb. 13, 2017, and were found dead the next day. He was arrested in 2022 and faces two counts of murder in the commission of kidnapping and two counts of murder in the killings. Abigail “Abby” Williams and Liberty “Libby” German.

Allen’s defense attorneys they had their cases heard Seven minutes after the start of proceedings on Wednesday morning.

journalists Indianapolis Star And Lafayette Magazine and Courier The case will be handled as it progresses through the judicial system.

This story will be updated throughout the day.

Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland makes his closing statement: “Richard Allen is the ‘Bridge Man'”

Carroll County Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland In his closing statement, he said the state’s evidence pointed to one man: Richard Allen.

McLeland told jurors that Allen used his gun to push Abby and Libby from the Monon High Bridge trailhead down a hill into the woods, where he killed them. “He left his calling card behind; a bullet from his gun.”

“The state has shown that Richard Allen is the Bridge Guy,” McLeland said, later adding: “He’s been living in the city for five years. He’s been living among us for five years.”

McLeland described the many confessions Allen made to prison officials, his therapist and family members while in prison. Westville Prison. He replayed recordings of Allen’s phone calls to his wife, Kathy Allen, and his mother, Janis Allen, and repeatedly reminded jurors that Richard Allen confessed to the crimes “of his own free will.”

McLeland mentioned the only piece of physical evidence linking Allen to the crime scene: an unspent bullet found six inches from Abby’s foot. McLeland said the Indiana State Police firearms investigator, whose analysis concluded that the bullet had passed through Allen’s gun, was never wrong.

McLeland talked about two police interrogations that led to Allen’s arrest. Allen said that on October 13, 2022, he admitted to wearing clothing similar to Bridge Guy’s. McLeland told jurors on Oct. 26, 2022, that he had no explanation for how the bullet from Allen’s gun ended up at the crime scene. Allen became increasingly angry as Indiana State Police Lt. Jerry Holeman continued to confront him.

If jurors were still unconvinced, McLeland urged them to go back to one of Allen’s confessions. While Allen was in Westville Correctional Facility, his therapist, Dr. Monica told Wala that she had forced Abby and Libby to go into the woods and planned to rape them, but that she was afraid of a van driving a private car nearby, according to Wala’s notes. of that session.

According to previous testimony, that vehicle belonged to Brad Weber, who drove a white van and lived near the trailhead. He told jurors he was coming home from work around 2:30pm on February 13, 2017; moments after the girls were forced off the road and into the woods.

That white van was a detail “only the killer would know,” McLeland told jurors.

Moreover, McLeland said, an Indiana State Police officer familiar with Allen’s voice after spending countless hours listening to all 700 prison calls to Allen’s family identified his voice as belonging to the Bridge Guy.

In the infamous video that Libby shot minutes before she and Abby disappeared, the man who would later be known as the Bridge Guy was seen following Abby on the bridge. “A voice from Libby told her that she should take out her phone and record,” McLeland told jurors.

Near the end of the 43-second video, a man can be heard telling the girls, “Go down the hill,” prosecutors said.

That man’s voice ISP veteran soldier Brian Harshman McLeland reminded jurors that he said it belonged to Richard Allen.

“All the pieces are clear now,” McLeland said. “All the pieces have been put together.”

Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland makes his closing statement: “Richard Allen is the ‘Bridge Man'”

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