DELPHI, Ind. (NewsNation) — The withdrawal of the Delphi murder suspect’s defense team could potentially help reduce the drama around the crime scene photo leak scandal, Indiana University Mauer School of Law professor Jody Madeira said.
There has been a lot of speculation as to why suspect Richard Allen‘s attorneys withdrew from the case, especially after the leak went public last week. Madiera said a lot of those rumors suggest the withdrawal and the leaks are in some way connected.
However, there have been other information leaks in previous months that have also added to the drama surrounding this case.
“This case has been a three-ring circus even before the original defense attorneys were appointed,” Madeira said.
Madeira explained that permissive withdrawal in criminal cases is actually highly unusual, meaning there has to be a good cause behind dropping a client. What that is in this case, however, is still unknown.
And while Judge Frances Gull was seemingly shocked by the withdrawal, approval of the withdrawal was likely necessary for the case to move forward with less drama.
“I believe Judge Gull was sort of very surprised at the level of drama that has occurred, and she did not want to take the chance that there could be any misrepresentations about what would happen. The consequences of the leaks, that kind of thing,” Madeira said.
Regardless of Allen’s defense team’s withdrawal, Allen will receive a public defender. The only real question that remains is what happens to his scheduled trial timeline.
The trial was set to start in January 2024. But with these recent developments, it is unclear if that start date will remain the same. He is expected back in court on Oct. 31 with his new legal representation.
Allen is charged with two counts of murder for allegedly killing 14-year-old Libbey German and 13-year-old Abigail Williams in a wooded area in Delphi, Indiana, where they were hiking in 2017.
Their deaths remained unsolved for several years until a break in the case led to Allen’s arrest nearly one year ago today.