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Delphi double murderer Richard Allen faces up to 130 years in prison at sentencing
CHICAGO (CBS) — Delphi double murderer Richard Allen will learn his fate learn during sentencing on Friday morning.
An Indiana jury has convicted Allen in the murders of 14-year-old Liberty “Libby” German and 13-year-old Abigail “Abby” Williams who had vanished during a hike in Delphi in 2017.
The jury of seven women and five men spent about 19 hours deliberating over the course of three days before finding Allen, 52, guilty of all counts.
Allen faces up to 130 years in prison. His sentencing is scheduled for 8 a.m. CT.
Delphi murders: Timeline of events
On Feb. 13, 2017, Abby and Libby were dropped off at a hiking trail on the Monon High Bridge in Delphi When they failed to meet Libby’s father later in the day, they were reported missing. They were found dead about a mile from where they were last seen with cuts to the throat, according to prosecutors.
Police investigated thousands of leads, and released multiple composite sketches of the suspect based on eyewitness accounts.
Audio evidence from Libby’s cell phone revealed an unknown man had told the girls to go “down the hill.” Libby also recorded a short Snapchat video of a man who police believed was the killer. Although police circulated the photo and audio just days after the killings, the case ran cold for more than five years until Allen was arrested in 2022.
Allen lived in Delphi and worked at a local CVS pharmacy until a clerk related to the investigation in September 2022 noticed he had placed himself at the scene of the killings. Just days after the bodies were discovered, Allen told police he had been on that trail around the time the girls were thought to have been killed. He told them he had been walking in the area and seen three “females” near a bridge but hadn’t spoken to them.
On Oct. 13, 2022, Allen was interviewed again after police searched through former suspects. Allen was arrested after police matched an unspent cartridge found between the girls’ bodies to a pistol recovered from his home during a police search.
Allen was arrested on Oct. 26, 2022, and was charged with two counts of murder while committing or attempting to commit a kidnapping five days later. Prosecutors later amended the charges to include two additional counts of murder. Allen pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Over the course of the trial, the prosecution highlighted Allen’s dozens of confessions while incarcerated: He confessed to the crime more than 60 times, prosecutors say, including to his wife, his mother, the psychologist who treated him, the warden, and other prison employees and inmates. They played audio recordings of some of the confessions for the jury. The defense doubted the confessions and said they were made involuntarily and that he was suffering from mental illness at the time.
Monica Wala, the former lead psychologist at Westville Correctional Facility where Allen was housed, testified he initially told her he was innocent but began confessing to the crimes in April 2023, around the time he was placed back on suicide watch.
According to WTHR, Wala testified that Allen had told her, “I killed Abby and Libby. I’m sorry,” and that he originally planned to sexually assault the victims but ran away when he saw a van nearby and that he had cut the girls’ throats and covered their bodies with sticks, she testified.
Allen’s lawyers previously suggested that the girls were killed as part of a pagan ritual sacrifice and accused police of ignoring evidence from the crime scene. In a search warrant request in March 2017, an FBI agent claimed the girls’ bodies appeared to have been “moved and staged” at the crime scene. That theory was not heard by the jury per the judge’s ruling.
Thompkins said Allen’s conviction could be reversed if an appeal finds the jury did not hear a fair amount of evidence.
The defense could file an appeal within 30 days of the sentencing.
This is a developing story.
With Christmas only a few days away, many Americans may be dreaming of a white Christmas, but few will end up walking in a winter wonderland. The warm and above-average temperatures in the weather forecast across the continental U.S. for Christmas week of 2024 are expected to keep any precipitation that falls as rain, not snow, for many parts of the country.
Where is most likely to get snow on Christmas?
If you’re looking for fluffy white flakes, some spots have a better chance than others.
This year, the only parts of the U.S. likely to see a white Christmas will be in the Rocky Mountains and along the U.S. border with Canada. That includes some northern areas of North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, upstate New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.
Weather forecast for holiday travel
For those who are trying to travel on Monday, the more difficult regions will be in the Upper Midwest and in the northern Rockies. Falling snowflakes can be found in states like Idaho, western Montana, northern Minnesota, Wisconsin and northern Michigan. Interstate travel will be hazardous through parts of I-15, I-90, I-84, I-94 and I-75.
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The wintry weather conditions shift from the Great Lakes region into the Northeast on Tuesday. Cold air pushes through to bring upwards of a half a foot of snow to the interior Northeast.
Moisture from the Gulf of Mexico will bring rain showers to the Mississippi Valley. In the West, the next atmospheric river will deliver rain to the lower elevations, with snow falling in the Cascade Mountains. Hazardous interstate travel conditions will be found along I-5, I-90, I-94, I-80, I-81 and even parts of I-95 up the East Coast.
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Map of snow forecast for Christmas Day 2024
On Wednesday, Christmas Day, not many locations will see the fresh snowfall of picture-book holidays.
The definition of a “white Christmas” by the National Weather Service is having at least 1 inch of snow on the ground on Christmas morning. The only areas likely to meet that qualification on Christmas Day this year will be in the Rockies and along the U.S.-Canada border.
The moisture from the atmospheric river in the West will move into the Rockies to bring light snow to the higher elevations.
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Elsewhere, rain showers stick around in the Mississippi Valley, making for a soggy Christmas Day. Temperatures are forecast to be well above the freezing mark most places, which means precipitation will mainly be rain. Messy travel on Christmas could be found along Interstate 40, I-55, I-40, I-70, I-80 and I-90.
On Thursday, the next round of weather moves into the Northwest. Lower elevation rain can be expected along I-5, while in the interior Northwest.heavier snowfall is forecast in the Cascades and down into the Sierra Nevada mountains. Lingering rain showers continue in the Mississippi Valley and into parts of the Midwest.
Are white Christmases getting rarer?
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has tracked snowfall data across the U.S. for years, and says there have been some notable changes over the past four decades, “consistent with the reality of long-term warming.”
When comparing the average probability of Christmas snowfall from 1981-2010 to the period from 1991-2020, NOAA says, “More areas experienced decreases in their chances of a white Christmas than experienced increases.”
The NOAA map below shows areas with the highest historic probability of seeing a white Christmas. Areas shaded in light blue have a higher than average chance, while the northern and mountain locations marked in white have historically had snow on Christmas at least 90% of the time.
NOAA/Climate.gov
You can explore an interactive version of the map on NOAA’s website here.
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Tyler Perry and Kerry Washington on bringing the untold story of “Six Triple Eight” to the big screen
Hollywood powerhouses Tyler Perry and Kerry Washington have joined forces to tell the remarkable story of the 6888th Postal Battalion, which was the only women’s Army Corps unit of color to be stationed in Europe during World War II. Perry — who wrote, directed and produced the film — describes “Six Triple Eight” as an important chapter in U.S. history.
The film centers on the women of the 6888th who were sent to Europe with the daunting task of delivering a backlog of nearly 17 million pieces of mail to U.S. soldiers and their families. The women not only completed the mission, but did so in just 90 days, defying expectations. Kerry Washington stars as Major Charity Adams, the real-life commanding officer of the unit and the highest-ranking Black female officer during the war.
At Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall near Washington, D.C., Perry and Washington discussed the significance of sharing this story.
Washington’s portrayal of Adams was a key part of the project. Perry explained his choice of Washington for the role, saying, “I thought, ‘Let’s show the world that there’s something so different here from you. I know they know Olivia Pope. But when we’re done, they’re going to see no one but Charity Adams.'”
The film also brought intense moments of historical reflection. Perry recounted a personal encounter with Lena King, one of the last surviving members of the 6888th, who was 99 years old at the time and home on hospice.
“I actually wanted all of the surviving members to see it,” he said. “Lena was the only one who got a chance to. I rushed a cut together and bought it to her.”
King’s reaction to the film was unforgettable for Perry.
“We watched it and she was in tears. And at the end of it, she’s saluting and she’s crying. And she says, ‘Tyler, thank you for letting the world know that black women contributed into war effort,'” Perry recalled.
Both Perry and Washington recognized the story’s importance, emphasizing that the women of the 6888th had been overlooked historically.
“There were 855 Black women and women of color who served in World War II, and no one knew it,” Perry said. Washington added, “And went overseas to represent this country.”
The film also explores the strength of these women who faced immense odds.
“It really is about exceeding expectations and being able to achieve against all odds and being able to stand up to people who don’t believe in you to say, ‘I believe in me. And I believe in we,'” Washington said.
You can stream “Six Triple Eight” on Netflix.
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