It stayed a secret for years. For seven winters, the people of Delphi, Indiana, and the millions of true crime followers watching from their screens lived in a vacuum of information. We knew the basics: two young girls, Abigail Williams and Liberty German, went for a hike on the Monon High Bridge trail on February 13, 2017. They never came home. Their bodies were found the next day. But the Abby and Libby cause of death remained one of the most guarded secrets in modern American criminal history.
The police didn't leak it. The families, showing incredible restraint, didn't talk about it. It wasn't until the 2024 trial of Richard Allen that the public finally got the brutal, unfiltered truth.
Honestly, the reality was far more disturbing than the internet rumors had suggested.
What the Court Records Finally Revealed
When the trial finally kicked off in Carroll County, the medical evidence came out fast. It was heavy. According to the testimony of Dr. Roland Kohr, the pathologist who performed the autopsies, both girls died from sharp force injuries. Basically, their throats had been cut.
Libby German suffered a massive wound to the left side of her neck. It was deep. It severed her carotid artery and her jugular vein. She didn't have much of a chance. Abby Williams suffered a similar fate, though her wound was on the right side. The prosecution argued that these were not random swipes but deliberate, calculated actions.
There's a lot of talk about "staging" at the crime scene. It's a weird word to use for a tragedy, but it’s what the investigators focused on. The girls were found in a wooded area on private property, about 0.2 miles from the bridge. Libby was found nude, her clothes scattered nearby and some even found in the creek. Abby, on the other hand, was dressed—but not in her own clothes. She was wearing Libby’s sweatshirt and some of her own items.
The Missing "Signatures"
For a long time, people obsessed over the "non-secular" or "ritualistic" signatures mentioned in early search warrant affidavits. You've probably heard the theories. Odinism. Pagan rituals. Sticks placed in patterns.
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During the trial, the defense leaned hard into this. They suggested that the Abby and Libby cause of death and the way their bodies were left—with sticks placed over Abby’s head in a shape some likened to runes—pointed to a group of ritualistic killers rather than a lone actor like Richard Allen. They called it a "ritualistic sacrifice."
But the prosecution called it a distraction. They argued that the "sticks" were just forest debris or a weak attempt by a panicked killer to hide the bodies. Dr. Kohr testified that there was no evidence of sexual assault, which is rare in these types of double homicides, adding another layer of confusion to the motive.
Why Information Was Suppressed for So Long
The gag order in this case was ironclad. Judge Frances Gull wasn't playing around.
The reason the authorities kept the Abby and Libby cause of death under wraps was "investigative integrity." In high-profile murders, the police keep "holdback information." This is stuff only the killer would know. If a guy walks into a police station and says he killed someone, they ask him how. If he says he shot them, but the police know the victim was stabbed, they know he’s a liar or a "false confessor."
In Delphi, they held back everything. They held back the type of weapon. They held back the "signatures." They even held back the fact that a .40 caliber unspent round was found between the girls' bodies. That bullet ended up being the "smoking gun" that led them to Richard Allen’s doorstep years later.
The Physicality of the Crime Scene
It’s hard to imagine the logistics. The defense argued that one man couldn't have controlled two energetic teenagers, forced them down a steep hill, across a creek, and killed them both with a knife in broad daylight without anyone hearing a scream.
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- The Bridge: The Monon High Bridge is high. Really high. Over 60 feet. Once you're out there, you're trapped if someone blocks the end.
- The Video: Libby's phone captured the "Bridge Guy" walking toward them. She had the presence of mind to hit record. That 43-second clip, where he says "Guys... down the hill," is the only reason we have a suspect today.
- The Weapon: While the autopsies confirmed sharp force trauma, the actual murder weapon was never found. No knife was ever recovered from Allen’s home that could be definitively linked to the wounds, though he owned several.
The prosecution’s theory was simple: Allen used a gun to intimate them—hence the unspent shell—and then used a knife to commit the murders. He did it fast. He did it quietly.
Misconceptions and the "Internet Sleuth" Effect
If you spent any time on Reddit or YouTube between 2017 and 2023, you saw some wild stuff. People were accusing local business owners, police officers, and even family members.
One of the biggest misconceptions was that the girls were strangled. They weren't. Another was that there was a "massive amount of blood" lost at the scene. While there was blood, Dr. Kohr noted that Libby had likely bled out into the soil, which absorbed much of it, making the scene look "cleaner" than some expected for such a violent act.
There was also the "two killers" theory. People assumed that because there were two victims, there had to be two attackers. But the medical evidence didn't necessarily support that. The timing of the deaths was very close together.
The Toll on Delphi
Delphi is a tiny town. Less than 3,000 people. When you look at the Abby and Libby cause of death and the brutality of it, you realize why the town was looking over its shoulder for years. The "Bridge Guy" sketch was on every window.
When Richard Allen was arrested in October 2022, the shock wasn't just that they found him—it was that he had been there the whole time. He worked at the local CVS. He had processed photos for the families. He had even lived just a few miles from the trails.
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The trial revealed that Allen had allegedly confessed over 60 times while in prison, mostly to his wife and mother over the phone. He described the murders in detail. He mentioned the bridge. He mentioned the "box cutter" or knife. The defense claimed these were "forced confessions" brought on by a psychotic break due to his "Third World" prison conditions (solitary confinement).
Nuance in the Forensic Findings
Forensics isn't always like CSI. It’s messy.
Dr. Kohr admitted under cross-examination that he couldn't pinpoint the exact time of death. He could only say they died sometime between the afternoon of the 13th and the morning of the 14th. This "window" is a standard frustration in forensic pathology, but it gave the defense room to argue that the girls could have been held elsewhere and brought back to the woods later.
However, the lack of "defense wounds" on Abby suggested she may have been incapacitated or compliant due to fear before the end. Libby did have some minor injuries on her hands, suggesting a brief struggle, but the speed of the attack on the neck likely ended things within minutes.
What This Means for Future Safety
The Delphi case changed how people use public trails in Indiana. It's a reminder that even in the safest-looking places, situational awareness is everything.
If you are following this case, the best way to honor the memory of Abby and Libby isn't by obsessing over the gruesome details of the Abby and Libby cause of death, but by supporting the initiatives that came from it. The "Abby and Libby Memorial Park" in Delphi is a massive, beautiful complex that turned a site of tragedy into a place for kids to play.
Actionable Steps for Those Following the Case
To get the most accurate, non-sensationalized information on the Delphi case, you should look directly at the primary sources rather than filtered social media commentary.
- Read the Probable Cause Affidavit: This document, released in late 2022, outlines exactly why Richard Allen was arrested, including the ballistics evidence regarding the unspent shell.
- Follow Courtroom Reporters: Look for journalists like those from The Indianapolis Star or WTHR who were physically in the courtroom. They provide the most objective "play-by-play" of testimony.
- Avoid "Leak" Channels: Much of the information leaked via "sketchy" YouTube channels early on was proven false or taken out of context during the trial.
- Support Victim Advocacy: Organizations like the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) do the actual work of preventing these tragedies.
The closure of the trial brings a horrific chapter to an end, but for the families, the "how" of the Abby and Libby cause of death will always be secondary to the "who" they lost. They were two girls who loved sports, art, and their families. That is what Delphi chooses to remember.