Police sketches, hair sample came up in the Delphi murders jury selection. Where things stand

The long-awaited trial of accused killer Richard Allen is scheduled to begin this week after Tuesday's final selection of the jury. After whittling down hundreds of prospective jurors, 12 of them will decide his fate.

Allen stands accused in the 2017 killings of teens Abigail "Abby" Williams and Liberty "Libby" German, whose gruesome deaths shocked the small, tightly knit town of Delphi, Indiana .

Here's what's going on with Richard Allen's trial as of Wednesday morning, Oct. 16, a day after jury selection concluded.

Delphi murder jury selection concludes

Sixteen people selected from Allen County — 12 jurors and four alternates — were picked just before 3:30 p.m. Tuesday in Fort Wayne. On Thursday, the panel is scheduled to be sworn in. On Friday, they'll be at the Carroll County Courthouse in Delphi, roughly two hours away, and will remain sequestered in a hotel throughout the trial, which is scheduled to end Nov. 15.

The murders happened in Delphi. Why were jurors selected from a different county?

Special Judge Frances Gull , who's overseeing the case, made the decision to select jurors from outside of Delphi, a town of 2,961 people , to ensure impartiality and Allen's right to a fair trial.

The announcement of Allen's arrest in October 2022 sent shockwaves through Delphi's closely woven community. Many recognized Allen, a licensed pharmacy technician at the town's only CVS, as the nice guy who helped people find store items.

Roughly 300 Allen County residents were summoned as prospective jurors until 16 people were ultimately selected.

'He just blended right in': Indiana town shocked, wants answers about accused Delphi killer Richard Allen

State vs. Richard M. Allen: When and where is the trial?

Allen's trial was initially scheduled for January 2024, then delayed until October. Later, Special Judge Frances Gull rescheduled the trial for May. It was rescheduled again for Oct. 14 through Nov. 15 in Allen County.

Other updates: Tuesday sees new revelations in the Delphi case

Prosecutor wants police sketches of Allen barred. Why?

Carroll County Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland filed a motion Tuesday requesting the court bar widely publicized sketches of the man police believed to be the Delphi suspect. Authorities released the drawings — one in July 2017 and the other in April 2019 — before Allen's arrest.

McLeland argued the sketches could "confuse or mislead the jury." The motion he filed said it was the state's belief that Allen's defense would use the drawings to discredit testimony that Allen could have committed the crimes.

As of Wednesday morning, no ruling on McLeland's motion has yet to be made.

Defense claims hair found in victim's hand not Allen's

During Tuesday's jury selection, the defense made a surprise revelation, claiming a hair found in Williams' hand did not match Allen's, according to media reports from inside the courtroom. How this evidence, which has yet to be scrutinized, will affect Allen's case won't be known until the trial is officially underway.

When is Richard Allen's trial in the Delphi case?

Opening statements for Allen's trial are tentatively scheduled to begin Friday, Oct. 18 and last until Nov. 15.

(This story was updated to add new information.)

IndyStar reporter Sarah Nelson , and Lafayette Journal & Courier reporters Virginia Black and Ron Wilkins contributed to this .

John Tufts covers trending news for IndyStar and Midwest Connect. Send him a news tip at . at JTuftsReports .