The deaths of Indiana teenagers Abigail “Abby” Williams and Liberty “Libby” German while strolling and taking photos on a hiking trail in early 2017 went more than five years without an arrest.

That was until late 2022, when a pharmacy technician and married father named Richard Allen was charged with the crime that rocked the small community of Delphi, about 60 miles northwest of Indianapolis.

The search for the murderer of the best friends had previously dragged on. Even a haunting clue that investigators said was retrieved from Libby's cellphone – which piqued the interest of internet sleuths because it appeared to show the suspect – only deepened the mystery.

The bodies of 13-year-old Abby and 14-year-old Libby, eighth-graders at Delphi Community Middle School, were found loitering together near an abandoned railroad bridge a day after their families reported they were missing. According to court documents, the girls were fatally stabbed.

Allen's lawyers maintain he is innocent and said after his arrest, “Rick has nothing to hide.”

And now that the 52-year-old Allen's double murder trial began with jury selection on Monday, the answers to numerous questions and tangled connections may finally come to light.

Why details are limited

Judge Frances Gull issued a gag order in December 2022 after Allen's lawyers spoke out in defense of their client. At that point, a probable cause affidavit was unsealed, alleging that a bullet found near the children's bodies was linked to a gun belonging to the suspect.

The Carroll County District Attorney's Office sought the silence order because of intense media coverage, and it has blocked nearly everyone connected to the case, including attorneys, law enforcement officials and family members, from speaking publicly.

However, the defense also requested that the trial take place outside of Caroll County, arguing the possibility of a “tainted jury pool.” Gull denied that request but agreed that the jury should come from Allen County, more than 100 miles away.

After jury selection this week at the Allen County headquarters in Fort Wayne, the trial will continue in Carroll County and could last about a month as the jury is sequestered. Gull has banned video and audio recordings from the courtroom and banned the use of electronic devices.

Allen, who remains incarcerated while awaiting trial, faces two counts of murder and two counts of felony murder in the teens' deaths. If found guilty, he could face up to 130 years in prison.

Alleged confessions

A highly anticipated aspect of the trial is what motives prosecutors will cite in their case against Allen, whose lawyers said he “has never been arrested or charged with a crime in his life.”

For years, state police had no named suspect, instead occasionally pleading with the public for help by releasing information, including audio and images from a video found on Libby's cellphone. The phone was found under her body, according to the affidavit.

A male voice could be heard in the audio saying, “Guys, down the hill.”

Although the clip garnered interest on social media and among true crime fans, it failed to provide a viable lead. Police later released additional content from the video, including a person wearing a dark jacket and jeans who they believed was their suspect as he walked near the Delphi Historic Trail. One of the girls can also be heard saying “Gun” in the video.

In the affidavit, police confirmed that they first interviewed Allen as part of the case in 2017, and they said he admitted to being on the trail the day the teens went missing.

In June 2023, hundreds of pages of documents related to the case were unsealed, revealing that an imprisoned Allen had allegedly confessed to his wife in a phone call several months earlier that he had committed the murders.

Prosecutors also said he confessed to other people, including staff and inmates at the maximum security prison where he was being held.

But his lawyers responded in a separate document that he “appeared to be suffering from various psychotic symptoms, which counsel would describe as schizophrenic and delusional.” They also said Allen appeared to be suffering from memory loss and “a general inability to rationalize.” to communicate with his lawyer and family members”.

The lawyers noted that this behavior was different from his normal behavior.

But while Allen's defense is expected to refute any evidence of an alleged confession, his lawyers Andrew Baldwin and Bradley Rozzi will not be able to offer jurors an alternative theory for the murders. Gull last month rejected her claim that Abby and Libby were murdered as part of a ritual sacrifice by people associated with Odinism, a Norse pagan religion that has spread among white nationalist groups.

While the defense stated in a memo that crime scene details could indicate some sort of occult practice, Gull ultimately concluded that “the probative value of such evidence is limited by the confusion of the facts and its potential to mislead the jury.” is far outweighed.”

Carroll County Prosecutor Nick McLeland downplayed the Odinism theory, calling it a “fanciful defense that can devour social media.”

However, defense attorneys can still argue during the trial why certain evidence is admissible.

Visit to the crime scene

The judge has yet to rule on a defense request to allow jurors to visit the crime scene, saying it would “significantly help” them understand what is being presented in court.

A visit there would help “observe and feel the unique topography of the country; something that cannot be understood from photos and videos,” the defense attorneys wrote in their motion.

Prosecutors have objected to the move, including on security grounds. Gull said she would decide after the jury's selection.

Meanwhile, the local Caroll County courtroom is expected to be packed with victims' supporters as the trial begins. In the Delphi community, home to about 3,000 people, Abby is remembered as an avid reader who enjoyed playing bongo with her cat and on her middle school volleyball team. Libby, who had sisters, also loved sports, painting and vacationing with her family.

Abby's obituary said, “She and her good friend Libby looked forward to planning their next four years of school together.”

Libby's grandfather Mike Patty told reporters after Allen's arrest in October 2022 that the families' quest for justice was just beginning.

“All I know is that there is still a task ahead of us, another hill to climb,” he said. “But we are up to the challenge and will continue. We won’t stop.”