Delphi Murder Suspect Gets Jail Transfer as Judge Slams Public’s ‘Blood Lust’

The public’s “blood lust” for details in the case of an unassuming pharmacy technician accused of murdering two young girls has apparently created a situation so fraught, the county sheriff says he can’t guarantee the suspect’s safety in the local lockup.

A “toxic and harmful insistence on ‘public information’” about Richard Matthew Allen is putting his life in “imminent danger,” along with making life a waking hell for court employees, according to the judge who was overseeing the case until he recused himself Thursday afternoon.

Allen, 50, was arrested Oct. 26 over the 2017 killings of Libby German, 14, and Abby Williams, 13, on a Delphi, Indiana, hiking trail. The pair vanished while walking together on Feb. 13; their bodies were found the next day by searchers. Cops followed countless leads, and received more than 70,000 tips, before finally fingering Allen as their man.

But authorities have opted to seal the probable cause affidavit revealing how and why police believe Allen killed the teens, citing “extraordinary circumstances” to override state public records laws, and prompting frustration among a curious public. A hearing will be held later this month to listen to arguments on both sides from prosecutors and the citizenry. Until then, the particulars of how detectives zeroed in on Allen, along with the evidence cops have against him, will be kept under wraps to protect the integrity of the investigation—a move Carroll County Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland last week admitted was “unusual.”

After Allen was first taken into custody nine days ago, he was detained in the Carroll County Jail, according to the Indiana State Police. On Oct. 28, when he was formally charged with two counts of murder, Allen was taken to the White County Jail, where he was ordered held without bond.

However, Carroll County Sheriff Tobe H. Leazenby said in a motion filed Thursday that the high-profile case has attracted “extensive coverage from an array of various media platforms, both mainstream and social, throughout this state, the United States, and the world,” thus “creating potential safety and security concerns.”

“Because of the aforementioned reasons… I cannot provide the services, attention, or supervision necessary to protect or meet the defendant’s needs or to insure, protect, and guarantee the safety or security of the defendant, staff, or facilities,” states Leazenby’s motion, which was provided to The Daily Beast by the Carroll County Circuit Court clerk’s office.

Leazenby asked for Allen to be transferred to a more secure state facility. On Thursday, Carroll Circuit Judge Benjamin Diener granted the request in a blistering order pleading for cooler heads and more courthouse administrators.

The very same day, it was announced that Diener had recused himself from the case for unspecified reasons. Allen County Judge Fran Gull is set to take over the case.

“The Court, being duly advised, FINDS that [Allen] is an inmate awaiting trial and is in imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death, or represents a substantial threat to the safety of others,” the order states. “This FINDING is not predicated on any acts or alleged acts of [Allen], since arrest, rather a toxic and harmful insistence on ‘public information’ about [Allen] and this case.”

When Allen appeared for his initial hearing last Friday, “he was clad in protective gear,” according to the order. “That protection was not to protect [Allen] from the Court. That protection was to protect [Allen] from the public.”

A majority of the “public interest” in the Allen case “consists of people attempting to raise their status or profit financially,” according to Diener, whose order notes that the court generally has 30 days to decide on motions filed by any party in a case.

“Yet,” Diener marvels in his order, he “keeps getting direct requests from non-parties for ‘public information,’” threatening him with lawsuits if he doesn’t respond within one to seven days.

In an attempt to maintain control over his caseload, Diener’s order says he is trying to “ignore the maelstrom of ‘interest’ from the public.” At the same time, Diener notes, with apparent alarm, that YouTube “already hosts content regarding family members of [Diener’s], including photos.”

“The public’s blood lust for information, before it exists, is extremely dangerous,” the order continues. “ALL PUBLIC SERVANTS administering this action do not feel safe and are not protected… When the public peddles misinformation with reckless abandon, we all are not safe.”

Diener, in the order, at one point begs for administrative help to fend off the relentless deluge. He acknowledges the “public’s desire to learn about access to court records,” but maintains that it is “inherently disruptive” for staffers to “educat[e] each individual, ad-hoc, whenever they choose to seek ‘public information.’”

“As a branch of the Supreme Court, any requests for public information about this action should be directed to whomever is the public information coordinator for the Courts in general,” the order goes on. “lf there is not such a position, our state may need one.”

An email Diener sent to state court administrators and copied to local NBC affiliate 13News said his staff has been knocked flat by the crush of interest in the Allen case.

“Is it honestly the Judge’s duty to reply to each non-party request for ‘information’ and explain why when a request is rendered confidential until a hearing, it is a logical impossibility to acknowledge the existence of the confidential information?” Diener wrote. “Just sending this inquiry took 15 minutes of my time. Imagine actually responding to each of these requests.”

As for the probable cause affidavit in Allen’s case staying sealed, Indiana Supreme Court Chief Public Information Officer Kathryn Dolan told 13News in an email that she had recently been in touch with Diener about a path forward.

“The press will continue asking for information to be made public,” Dolan wrote. “While that does not mean the information is public (or should be public), I do suggest the court be clear with procedural information on what is public and when or why (according to the rule) it is not public.”

The rest of Diener’s Thursday order lays out filing deadlines for Allen’s defense, reminding him that he must hire a lawyer—or request court-appointed counsel—within 20 days of his initial hearing, which took place six days ago.

Allen will now be transferred by Leazenby’s office to a state facility for safekeeping, “provided that space is available,” according to Diener’s order. It remains unclear where, or when, the move will occur.

Allen’s arrest shocked the small, rural community of Delphi, where the CVS pharmacy tech was well-known around town.

“I just couldn’t believe it when they said they arrested him,” one longtime friend of Allen’s told The Daily Beast on Monday. “I said, ‘Well, that can’t be the Rick we know.’ And then we come to find out it was… There wouldn’t have been any inkling to anyone that knew him that would expect him to do something like that. He just didn’t seem that type of person. But… you never know.”