Attorneys for Richard Allen, man charged in Delphi murders, have withdrawn their legal representation

By Jennifer Henderson, CNN

(CNN) — Richard Allen, the man charged in the 2017 killings of two teenage girls in Delphi, Indiana, no longer has legal representation, Judge Frances C. Gull said during a Thursday hearing.

Allen, who is accused of killing Liberty “Libby” German, 14, and Abigail “Abby” Williams, 13, was being represented by defense attorneys Brad Rozzi and Andrew Baldwin.

The attorneys withdrew their representation of Allen on Thursday in an “unexpected turn of events,” according to Gull.

“Mr. Baldwin made an oral motion to withdraw,” the judge said during the hearing, which lasted only a few minutes. “I granted that oral motion to withdraw, and Mr. Rozzi will be submitting a written motion to withdraw, I’m assuming, within the next couple of days.”

Gull said she would reach out to public defenders to appoint new counsel for Allen, who was arrested last October after a five-and-a-half-year nationwide search.

The bodies of the teenage girls were found in a wooded area near a trail in February 2017.

The two girls had gone for a hike during a day off from school on February 13 and failed to show up to meet Libby’s father, according to police. Their bodies were discovered the next day, authorities said.

A hearing set for October 31 in Carroll County Circuit Court remains scheduled, and new dates will be set for the trial and a suppression hearing filed by the now-former counsel, according to Gull.

The judge ordered all discovery to be provided back to the State of Indiana until it can be turned over to the successor counsel. She said the attorneys have indicated they will cooperate with the successor counsel.

Gull ordered Allen to be transported back to the Indiana Department of Correction.

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