Richard Allen asks Carroll Circuit Court for public defender
DELPHI, Ind. (WISH) — Richard Allen, a suspect in the 2017 double murder of Abigail Williams and Liberty German near Delphi, sent a handwritten letter to the Carroll Circuit Court asking for a public defender. News 8 has obtained a copy of that letter.
“I, Richard M. Allen, hereby throw myself at the mercy of the court. I am begging for legal assistance in a public defender or whatever help is available,” Allen wrote in the letter.
Allen goes on to say he and his wife have been forced to immediately abandon employment due to his incarceration and his wife’s public safety.
His wife also no longer lives in their shared Delphi home.
“At my initial hearing on Oct. 28, 2022 I asked to find representation for myself. However, at the time I had no clue how expensive it would be just to talk to someone,” Allen wrote.
Allen was arrested on Oct. 28 on two counts of murder. Allen worked at a local CVS.
He entered a not guilty plea during his initial hearing and is due back in court on Jan. 10, 2023. At first he was held without bond in the White County Jail, but he was later transferred to a state facility.
Carroll County Sherriff Tobe Lazenby requested he be moved to that state facility on Nov. 3. The request was approved by Carroll County Circuit Court Judge Benjamin Diener, who later that day recused himself from the case.
In his order to transfer Allen to a state facility, Diener wrote that the move was for Allen’s safety. According to court documents, Allen was wearing protective gear when he appeared for his initial hearing. Court papers say the measure was to protect Allen from the public.
Although Allen was arrested, the probable cause affidavit is sealed, a hearing is set for Nov. 22 to determine if the document will be made public but it could be rescheduled because Allen County judge Frances C. Gull was appointed Thursday to conduct the hearing and handle Allen’s case.
