The Indiana Supreme Court will hear arguments on Thursday to determine whether the man suspected of killing two Delphi, Indiana, teenagers should have his original attorneys reinstated and whether the judge in the case should be removed.
Richard Allen, 51, is accused of murdering 13-year-old Abby Williams and 14-year-old Libby German on a hiking trail back in 2017. The state Supreme Court will determine whether to remove special Judge Fran Gull from the case and whether Allen’s original defense attorneys, Andrew Baldwin and Bradley Rozzi, should be reinstated.
Allen’s trial is scheduled to begin in October, but his attorneys will also argue this week to uphold the defendant’s right to a speedy trial and to set a new trial date within 70 days of its decision.
The state Supreme Court will review the circumstances of Baldwin and Rozzi’s removal after the attorneys alleged that during a closed-door meeting with Gull, the judge threatened to harm the attorney’s reputation by accusing them of “gross negligence” in open court unless they withdrew from the case. The attorneys withdrew but filed a petition to represent Allen pro bono. Judge Gull then barred them from representing Allen in any capacity.
The transcript, first obtained by WTHR, shows the judge planned to remove the two attorneys prior to her public announcement they had withdrawn.
At the meeting, which included Carroll County Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland, the group discussed a leak of documents from Baldwin’s office, but Judge Gull stated that was not the only reason she wanted the attorneys removed from representing Allen. Gull said the attorneys “potentially” violated the Rules of Professional Responsibility. She told Baldwin he was “grossly negligent” for sending a sensitive email to a “Brad” who was not Rozzi, and questioned whether the two attorneys had fully cooperated with a gag order she had filed. She also said she had evidence the attorneys “left materials all over a conference-room table, accessible to anyone.”
“It pains me to say this, but the totality of these circumstances demonstrate gross negligence and incompetence on the part of the defense team,” Gull said. “I am unsatisfied with your representation of Mr. Allen. I am gravely concerned about his rights to have competent, non-negligent representation. He currently doesn’t have that right now.”
Gull then said she told them this information privately but would say it in open court if they didn’t withdraw. From the transcript:
Rozzi: “So basically, what you’re saying is ‘You guys either quit on your own accord or you make me fire you?’ That’s what-“
Gull: “No. I’m saying to you that this is my this is what [I] plan to say in court on the record when we convene at two o’clock.”
Rozzi: “Well, so are – is the culmination of that that you’re removing us from the case?”
Gull: “I will, based on what I’ve just shared with you.”
A little later in the conversation, Rozzi told Gull she had “ambushed” him and Baldwin into a “forced resignation” without giving them a real opportunity to prepare for the meeting.
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“The options I’ve been given without any notice [from] the Court really are either I withdraw or I’m gonna be publicly shamed,” Rozzi said, “And that’s the way I see this. And I think that public shaming is not only – there’s not only a professional element to that, I think there’s a personal element too.”
The state Supreme Court will also determine whether Judge Gull should be removed following alleged bias against the defense.