Abby & Libby - The Delphi Murders - Richard Allen Arrested - #207

[iamshadow21]

He admitted he was also faking crazy.
Crazy as a fox.

jmo

Just from this assortment, it reads like a reel from central casting from an actor throwing everything out there to see what sticks.

I take it back what I said earlier, RA and his defense team are perfectly suited.

MOO

 

[FrostedGlass]

So re: the video-taped interviews. A lot has been said in this thread about how RA was holding his own etc, how he was saying he was wearing a *black* not a blue jacket on the day.

I knew that lack of audio from the trial would be an issue. So there is this person who is actually a reporter, Lauren Matthias, who's made ridiculously detailed notes. So I hope this answers the question re: what RA alleges to have worn that day. (Every single item he owns... amongst other ramblings.)

26:50 mark: What did you wear? (Paraphrasing) "A jacket, bluejeans... And then I have a carhartt jacket. We've all had carhartt jackets over the years. I have a blue one, a black one, I think I have an offbrand one. Could have worn that. I have hoodies. Jackets. A little bit of everything. Sweatshirts." And then LM reports that RA stops talking in the video to take a sip of water.

30:00 mark: They ask to see his phone and immediately he says he doesn't have the phone from back then (how does he know?), then rambles on about contracts and the LE has to keep pushing him back to the request he keeps ignoring.

All to say, IMO the details RA shares in the taped interview are seemingly too rambling to be proof of guilt or innocent, and I don't believe in body language.

All MOO

That's great, thanks. I've never heard of this YTer; her total recall is amazing.

Maybe we'll come across more versions of what he said he was wearing. I'll be specifically looking for one where he definitely says he was wearing the blue one.

 

[Bethan]

Caught up at last on thread, after almost 3 hrs solid reading.

( Followed the case closely since the girls went missing, but don’t post much. I’m cautious in what I write on a public forum)

Bear with me please, these thoughts that have been developing over a period of time but I’ve not seen raised/answered on the thread ( though I may have missed things)

1) Because the defence didn’t request a formal evaluation of mental competency prior to trial, does this leave open the path to appeal a guilty verdict on grounds of ‘ineffective assistance of counsel’?

Could this have been a deliberate move by the defence?

2) I have long thought RA may have had deep troubling feelings of inadequacy ( possibly linked to short stature) & felt emasculated by strong female family members.
Perhaps he experienced ambivalent/confusing feelings toward his close family members, at times hating & blaming them for his perceived inadequacies.
Perhaps he harboured fantasies of killing them ( all MOO) but substituted the two young girls to “save his family”?

3) Linked to the above, I wonder if RA experienced sexual dysfunction, adding to his feelings of inadequacy/frustration & indeed to violent rage if he intended to rape but was unable to do so physically.

With a history of depression, suicidal at times, possible medication ( antidepressants?) & alcoholism, I’d suggest he might well have experienced sexual dysfunction.

Sorry a long post from a retired medical practitioner. All MOO

 

[Jade]

Don't think this is someone that knows only the details the killer would know - not just yet.

"I swear I never cheated on a cigarette."

Definitely not someone that is thinking straight that is for sure.

JMO MOO JMT

• "I am not crazy. I am only acting like I am crazy."

all imo

 

[MiniMoo]

Those are not ‘confessions’….mere thoughts of a mentally ill man. Sounds like he’s goading…. Telling the world what they want to hear and trying to make it his truth

I don’t believe anyone can accept those as a true confession

These aren't the only confessions, are they?

There has to be more.

Sounds more like the rantings and ravings of someone that has lost the plot.

So far...

JMO MOO JMT

 

[iamshadow21]

• "I am not crazy. I am only acting like I am crazy."

all imo

Yeah, that's a pretty clear unambiguous statement that is at odds with some of his wilder statements and behaviour. Unless you take it as the truth, and then things make sense.

MOO

 

[steeltowngirl]

Do you have a source that it’s a “maximum security prison” and that this is “quite literally unheard of”?

I’m not who you asked, but it’s not unheard of.
Allen was one of 22 people housed pre-trial with the Indiana Department of Correction.

Delphi murders suspect Richard Allen moved to different prison

 

[MiniMoo]

• "I am not crazy. I am only acting like I am crazy."

all imo

Looking at it all though - I don't know about that.

Am sure Lawyer Lee or Andrea Burkhart mentioned he thought one guard was God - I think LL.

JMO MOO JMO

 

[mrjitty]

So re: the video-taped interviews. A lot has been said in this thread about how RA was holding his own etc, how he was saying he was wearing a *black* not a blue jacket on the day.

I knew that lack of audio from the trial would be an issue. So there is this person who is actually a reporter, Lauren Matthias, who's made ridiculously detailed notes. So I hope this answers the question re: what RA alleges to have worn that day. (Every single item he owns... amongst other ramblings.)

26:50 mark: What did you wear? (Paraphrasing) "A jacket, bluejeans... And then I have a carhartt jacket. We've all had carhartt jackets over the years. I have a blue one, a black one, I think I have an offbrand one. Could have worn that. I have hoodies. Jackets. A little bit of everything. Sweatshirts." And then LM reports that RA stops talking in the video to take a sip of water.

30:00 mark: They ask to see his phone and immediately he says he doesn't have the phone from back then (how does he know?), then rambles on about contracts and the LE has to keep pushing him back to the request he keeps ignoring.

All to say, IMO the details RA shares in the taped interview are seemingly too rambling to be proof of guilt or innocent, and I don't believe in body language.

All MOO

Thanks - this is very helpful. I think it's really difficult even for those in court every day to keep track of testimony. On other cases we've had the advantage of being able to go back to transcripts day after day ...

 

[steeltowngirl]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1851592658906460184

 

[mrjitty]

I do feel the defence centric commentators are under-estimating the possibility that RA cracked and told the truth rather than false confessions.

So even if this was some elaborate and inhumane scheme - it actually worked.

So then the D would obviously have appeal grounds that it has come in, but I am not sure why the truth of it should be doubted as a matter of course.

Also just noting once again that the defence didn't particularly make strongly grounded legal arguments as to why they should be excluded at the hearings. It seemed more this should go to the jury to assess reliability.

MOO

 

[steeltowngirl]

“They didn’t see me around the girls,” Allen said. “I don’t care how stressed out I get. I’m not going to admit to something I didn’t do. … You don’t have anything that implicates me, because I wasn’t out there.”

“You conscience is telling you, this is the day,” Holeman said, as the interview escalated.

Interrogations & The First Set of Confessions - Delphi Trail Day Ten Recap

DELPHI, Ind. — A marathon Day 10 in the Delphi murders trial Tuesday gave a split screen look at Richard Allen.

wibc.com

 

[m00c0w]

Looking at the picture again "BG" looks like he is just ahead of Platform 6.

Platform 6 is the last Platform before the end of the bridge on "The Down the Hill" side.

If 50 feet is the distance between each Platform to the next, then it is accurate that "BG" is 40 feet away from the end of the bridge. Which means "BG" is closer than 40 feet from Abby. Libby's cellphone video is 43 seconds long.

Also in the same I.D. episode it appears they play the "enhanced" audio of "BG". It is clear and there is no background noise.

https://www.investigationdiscovery.com/video/still-a-mystery-investigation-discovery/down-the-hill

FWIW, I did some digging yesterday into drone videos and photos of the bridge and came to the same conclusion about BG being just ahead of the last platform, relatively close to the end of the bridge. It’s the only spot that makes sense with the platform and the trees next to the platform as seen in the BG photos.

JMO

 

[m00c0w]

I do feel the defence centric commentators are under-estimating the possibility that RA cracked and told the truth rather than false confessions.

So even if this was some elaborate and inhumane scheme - it actually worked.

So then the D would obviously have appeal grounds that it has come in, but I am not sure why the truth of it should be doubted as a matter of course.

Also just noting once again that the defence didn't particularly make strongly grounded legal arguments as to why they should be excluded at the hearings. It seemed more this should go to the jury to assess reliability.

MOO

The defense also put seemingly more effort into writing a fiction novel and three revisions to it than actually trying to get RA moved. There were what, two attempts to modify the safekeeping order over a period of a year? If my client was in a prisoner of war camp, I’d certainly do more than file a motion to move him once he starts confessing to anyone and everyone that will listen.

Unless it’s really not that bad, and I just need to inject some plausible deniability into his confessions.

JMO

 

[DoctorRose]

Trying to stay caught up, I don't know how anyone keeps up on this thread!

I did for a couple of days but now I’m skipping ahead a bit. There’s no way lol.

 

[DoctorRose]

The Delphi Murders: Richard Allen on Trial: Day Ten: The Voice of Richard Allen

We discuss the tenth day of Richard Allen's trial. We viewed tapes of Allen's interviews with Tony Liggett, Steve Mullin, and Jerry Holeman, and we heard from...

murdersheetpodcast.com

Áine from TMS says that on paper she did not think RA's response to being shown the BG photo was necessarily that big of a deal, perhaps just weirdly/awkwardly phrased. Apparently in the video of the interview played yesterday in court when LE asks if BG is him, he gives a "weird, breathy laugh" before telling LE that line we all know by now- that if Abby and Libby had taken the picture, it wasn't him. He then continued repeating over and over that he had never met or seen the girls.
33:24 above

If I’m playing devils advocate (or RAs advocate I guess because I’m now leaning in neither direction as to his guilt) that could have been a “that image has like four pixels so I don’t know, but if that’s the guy you know took the girls then no, because I didn’t see them”. Like by looking you couldn’t tell so he’s saying “depends where that came from”. We know he was definitely more verbose than needed. He could have said “that’s too blurry. I don’t know”. I almost feel like saying “not if that’s a murderer” is less likely for a guilty person because you’d be more careful with how you phrased things? I have no idea. Bouncing back and forth in my opinions. JM (chaotic) O

 

[JAY CLUCK]

this trial is a joke. Strong argument defenses best move is BR stands up and says yeah we rest.

 

[mrjitty]

The defense also put seemingly more effort into writing a fiction novel and three revisions to it than actually trying to get RA moved. There were what, two attempts to modify the safekeeping order over a period of a year? If my client was in a prisoner of war camp, I’d certainly do more than file a motion to move him once he starts confessing to anyone and everyone that will listen.

Unless it’s really not that bad, and I just need to inject some plausible deniability into his confessions.

JMO

I don't know why they didn't plead the psychosis thing immediately in May '23 and try to get that all on the record - I still speculate they worried what else might come in if they did that

 

[Deleted member 296739]

I do feel the defence centric commentators are under-estimating the possibility that RA cracked and told the truth rather than false confessions.

So even if this was some elaborate and inhumane scheme - it actually worked.

RSBM
Very polite way of phrasing that!

Logically As I see it there’s 3 basic viable options (and one that not at a possibility) when looking at guilty vs not guilty and true/false confessions

1) guilty and faking crazy and confessions are true but trying to fake crazy to get off

2) guilty and actually going through a mental health crisis and confessions are still true but under duress

3) not guilty and actually going through a mental health crisis and confessions are false

4) not valid possibility- I don’t see not guilty and totally mentally healthy and giving false confessions as viable (also, being not guilty and confessing to a crime one didn’t commit doesn’t make the confessions true or the individual guilty)

If 2) is true grounds for appeal about his treatment while incarcerated in pretrial detention might come into play on appeal

And none of the above has anything to do with if the P has presented the case BARD to the jury - just. Moo as I look at logical options- maybe there’s other options I’m missing…

 

[m00c0w]

I don't know why they didn't plead the psychosis thing immediately in May '23 and try to get that all on the record - I still speculate they worried what else might come in if they did that

It’s still puzzling to me that he got some sort of legal mail on April 3, his lawyers clearly state it wasn’t discovery, and on that same day he seemingly confessed to his wife over the prison phone. She hangs up on him. He spends the next few days spiraling as his defense attorneys come visit him, take photos of him looking unwell, and a singular attempt is made to move him which the state actually didn’t object to. Guards state he’s only acting crazy when he realizes people are watching, and it gets worse when his lawyers are present.

Today’s testimony will be interesting for sure.

JMO