CARROLL COUNTY, Ind. – Delphi murder suspect Richard Allen has a new date for his bail hearing.

Special Judge Fran Gull held a virtual hearing Friday with Allen, his attorneys and prosecutors to set a new date. Allen is now scheduled to appear in court for a hearing on June 15. A June 16 date has also been set aside in case the court needs additional time.

In addition to the bail issue, the parties involved will discuss potential dates for a new trial during the June hearing. An Allen County court official said Allen’s attorneys told the court it would be “shocking” if they could be ready for trial before the end of the year due to the amount of evidence they have to comb through during discovery.

Judge Fran Gull had already expressed skepticism during a January hearing that the court would be able to meet its scheduled trial date in March. Gull cited the large amount of evidence in the case and the logistics of bringing jurors from Allen County to Carroll County. 

Allen faces two counts of murder in the deaths of Abby Williams and Libby German. This week marked six years since the girls were found dead on Feb. 14, 2017, a day after they were reported missing.

Allen’s lawyers filed a motion on Feb. 7 seeking a delay in their client’s bail hearing, which had been scheduled for today (Feb. 17). The attorneys indicated they still had a large amount of evidence to look through before the hearing and asked for additional time.

Carroll County Prosecutor Nick McLeland filed a motion on Monday saying the state didn’t object to a delay. Gull ruled Thursday that she would continue the hearing at a later date and scheduled Friday’s remote video conference to come up with the new hearing date.

Allen’s defense team is seeking to have him released on a “reasonable bail” as he awaits trial, arguing that the evidence isn’t strong enough to keep him behind bars. Prosecutors countered that the evidence “adds up to strong and evident proof of guilt” and believe Allen should stay in custody.