INDIANAPOLIS — The public has been waiting to listen to oral arguments for the state’s Supreme Court hearing in the Delphi double murders case.
The Indiana Supreme Court announced on Thursday that the hearing will be livestreamed to the public on Jan. 18, 2024, at 11 a.m.
Justices are set to hear arguments on defendant Richard Allen’s request to reinstate his original defense team of Bradley Rozzi and Andrew Baldwin and remove Special Judge Fran Gull from his trial.
The petition was also made for the judge to schedule a trial within 70 days of the high court’s ruling.
Previous reports showed Allen’s lawyers were removed from the case by Gull following a leak of crime scene evidence online. the judge referred to the attorneys as “grossly negligent” as a part of her reasoning for their removal.
Gull also said that their removal from the case would benefit Allen as he should have access to a competent defense team.
The leak in late fall was attributed to a former coworker of Baldwin who reportedly took photos of the crime scene images which were left out in a conference room in his office.
Judge Gull and Attorney General Todd Rokita asserted that the petition should be rejected since the defense team didn’t utilize appropriate legal avenues via the appellate process, going on to state that Allen should have appealed instead of filing a writ of mandamus.
The attorneys responded to the filing by arguing writing a writ was an appropriate legal avenue since it represented the only way to have both Baldwin and Rozzi reinstated to the case in time to hold Allen’s trial within 70 days of when the writ was filed.
Baldwin and Rozzi asserted that a writ was the only way to try and expedite the trial, which was initially set to be held in January, and not through an appeal process. The lawyers argued that an appeal would involve going to trial first.
The Indiana Supreme Court turned down a plea by Allen to open additional records connected to the case and make them public.
Previous reports showed Allen is charged with two counts of murder in the February 2017 deaths of Abby Williams and Libby German near the Monon High Bridge in Delphi.
Thursday’s release by the state’s highest court also reminded the public that “the argument between attorneys is not an opportunity for the public to express support for either side and only attorneys arguing the case are allowed to speak in court.”
Allen’s trial is scheduled for October 2024.
