Starting this week, the man accused of the 2017 killings of Delphi teenagers Abby Williams and Libby German will stand trial.

If you’ve read IndyStar or our sister USA TODAY Network Indiana newspapers for any amount of time, you’re likely familiar with the case against Richard Allen, the man arrested in 2022 on suspicion of the murders that rocked this small Indiana town.

You probably know the girls disappeared the day before Valentine’s Day and and it took more than five years for authorities to make an arrest. You’re probably familiar with the twists since Allen’s arrest, such as defense assertions of a link to Odinism to the defendant’s alleged prison confessions.

You might feel vested in knowing what evidence authorities have compiled to explain why they think Abby, 13, and Libby, 14, were forced off a trail and killed by a fellow Delphi resident.

And now, barring a last-second delay, a 12-member jury will hear the case against Allen and his defense over the next six weeks in one of the most high-profile murder trials in Indiana history. Journalists from IndyStar and the Lafayette Journal & Courier will be there every step of the way to keep you informed.

Our presence in the courtroom will be critical to Hoosiers’ understanding of the proceedings. Here’s why.

While Allen has the constitutional right to a public trial, Special Judge Frances Gull has given orders that will limit public access to only those who are actually in the courtrooms — in Fort Wayne for jury selection and in Delphi for the trial. No video or audio recording is allowed.

Gull has the unenviable task of managing a charged environment that will maintain the integrity of the trial, along with the safety of the accused and friends and family of the victims seeking closure from this horrific crime.

But to do that, the judge has clamped down on all electronic communication into and out of the courtroom, banning cellphones, smartwatches, laptops, audio recorders, TV cameras and digital cameras. Media seating has also been greatly restricted, and at Gull’s direction, members of the Indiana and national press corps have developed a “pool” approach to ensure all professional news outlets have access to what happens in court each day to share with their audiences.

Ensuring public access to the trial through trustworthy reporting from the courtroom has not been a given for this case, but we consider it vital and have put significant effort toward its preservation.

Without digital tools to aid our reporting in the courtroom, reporters will rely on handwritten notes that will be transcribed outside of the court and then form the basis of our daily reporting. A team of staffers will work together to bring you the latest news as quickly and thoroughly as possible.

Here’s what you can expect from IndyStar and the Journal & Courier after jury selection is completed and the trial starts, likely Friday.

Each weekday, Journal & Courier reporter Ron Wilkins will report from the court’s morning session, with a daily update posted at jconline.com and indystar.com by early afternoon. IndyStar reporters Sarah Nelson and Jordan Smith will cover the afternoon and Saturday sessions, with new reporting coming each weekday evening and Saturday afternoon.

The weight of justice: Delphi murder case jurors will face unimaginable pressure, life-changing decision

A recap of each full day at trial will appear in the next available print edition in both Indianapolis and Lafayette.

A team of editors and reporters in both newsrooms will support our reporters in Delphi, ensuring that you always have the latest from the trial.

Covering this trial is a large undertaking, especially considering that it’s scheduled to continue through the Nov. 5 election and some of our most important political reporting in the past four years. But we’re committed to telling Central Indiana’s stories and keeping you informed on all fronts.

As always, thank you for reading IndyStar.

Eric Larsen is IndyStar executive editor. Reach him at ericlarsen@indystar.com or 317-444-7342.

GARY, Ind. – An early morning fire in Northwest Indiana left dozens without homes on Saturday.

One resident, Amanda Stoddard, is being hailed as a hero after alerting her neighbors to the danger.

Amid the ashes, Stoddard sifted through the remnants, searching for fragments to rebuild her life after the fire claimed everything.

“The flames were coming through my window, in my living room and in my front bedroom,” Stoddard said. 

The fire occurred in the 1900 block of West Ridge Road in Gary, Ind., before 6:30 a.m.

Stoddard woke to flames and had to make a split-second decision.

“The trailer next door to me was fully engulfed, and the only thing I knew to do was to get everybody out because they go so fast. So I did. I woke up every neighbor, the whole trailer park really, and got them all out in time,” she said. 

Stoddard sprang into action, saving her neighbor John Denomie and his dog. 

“Not only did she save my life, but she saved my dog’s life and my dog went through a hard life. He was a rescue,” said Denomie. 

He suffers from a hearing disability. 

“Amanda kicked my door in and because I’m, I’m hearing impaired. Can’t hear when people are knocking on my door. She kicked my door in as the trailer next to me, the flames were getting closer and closer to my trailer,” said Denomie.

The fire raced through the mobile home park, destroying three trailers and a car before the Lake Ridge and Gary fire departments arrived.

The trailer park owner, John Petrassi, tried to battle the flames himself.

“I came out in my boxers, no shoes and ran down the street. Tried to put the fire out with that hose right there. The hose melted,” said John Petrassi.

An hour and a half later, the fire was out, but the damage was already done. Four trailers and two cars were destroyed. 

The American Red Cross stepped in to support the four displaced families as they grapple with what comes next.

Amid the uncertainty, one feeling prevails: gratitude. 

“The outpouring is just something else. Everybody’s doing what they can to help people. So, you know, as far as that goes, yeah, I’m grateful that I’m still standing here talking to you,” said Denomie.

The Gary Fire Department is investigating the cause of the blaze. 

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The new West Coast teams in the Big Ten Conference are largely a mystery to casual fans who follow Big Ten teams. For fans largely based in the Midwest core of the conference, there’s never been much reason to pay attention to the former Pac-12 schools apart from NCAA Tournament time.

However, all four of the new Big Ten members – Oregon, Southern California, UCLA and Washington – have had their moments in both men’s and women’s basketball. They will make their impact felt in 2024-25, especially on the women’s side, as USC and UCLA are expected to be Top 5 teams.

Indiana women’s basketball player Sydney Parrish knows as well as anyone how rough it can be to try to conquer the former Pac-12 schools.

Parrish transferred to Indiana from Oregon after the 2022 season. After she graduated from Hamilton Southeastern, Parrish played for the Ducks from 2020-22. She started all 32 games she played in her final season in Eugene. She averaged 8.5 points in her final season with the Ducks in 2022.

Parrish has kept tabs on her former and now-current league foes.

She said the challenge for Indiana isn’t necessarily going to be the long travel to the west – Indiana plays at Oregon (Jan. 24) and Washington (Jan. 27) in the middle of the Big Ten schedule – but the quality the Hoosiers will confront.

And along with that? Parrish thinks the teams out west are bigger.

“It’s a lot different than normal Big 10 teams where your post player is 6-3,” Parrish noted during Indiana’s Basketball Media Day in September.

Parrish cited Indiana’s experience playing against Stanford in the regular season and against South Carolina in the NCAA Tournament. The Hoosiers didn’t handle the size those teams had. Stanford blew Indiana out 96-64 in Palo Alto, Calif., in the second game of the 2023-24 season. Eventual national champion Gamecocks were up 22 on the Hoosiers in the NCAA Tournament before Indiana found its shooting touch to nearly roar back before losing, 79-75.

“We’re going to go up against girls that are 6-7, 6-8, and we have to know how to play against those,” Parrish said. “We played against South Carolina last year, Stanford last year, who had players that tall. So just learning from those mistakes that we made in some of those games and trying to capitalize in the games going into this year (is important).”

Among the tall players Indiana will face is 6-8 Oregon center Phillipina Kyei and 6-7 UCLA standout center Lauren Betts.

Playing the West Coast schools is just one thing Parrish is looking forward to this season. The versatile 6-2 forward has been part of Indiana’s scoring since her arrival, but without a dominant scorer like Mackenzie Holmes, the wealth should be spread around this season.

As part of that, Indiana coach Teri Moren has said that Indiana will play five-out this season. That’s something that should play right to Parrish’s skill set. She can both shoot (40% 3-point shooter) and drive the rim.

“We knew the time would come where Sara (Scalia) and Mac wouldn’t be here anymore, so I think we’ve taken that on, head on,” Parrish said.

“Players like me, Chloe (Moore-McNeil), Yarden (Garzon) have to step up a little more this year. But also some of our players that didn’t play a lot last year. Lenee (Beaumont), Shay (Ciezki) coming in, and Karoline (Striplin) coming in, and Lilly (Meister). I think everyone knows they need to step up a little more and carry a little bit more of that load,” Parrish added.

Parrish thinks playing five-out will create a wrinkle no one has seen in Meister’ game.

“I think she shot one three last season? But in practice she has (shown) she has the potential to be great against teams like UCLA, USC and Oregon, who have girls who are 6-7 and 6-8 out there. It’s great to see her grow on the court,” Parrish said.

Parrish’s own offseason priority was to shoot off the dribble. She thinks she’ll have the ball in her hands more this season.

“It’s not going to be just catch-and-shoot. Then just trying to finish around the rim. Sometimes I have matchups where smaller guards are on me, so I want to take advantage of those situations,” Parrish said.

Parrish also noted that Indiana has an advantage in that core players like herself, Garzon and Moore-McNeil have played together for so long. For that matter, Meister, Lexus Bargesser and Henna Sandvik have been along for the whole ride with Parrish.

“It’s amazing, especially with the transfer portal right now, there’s not a lot of teams who have three starters that have been together for three years,” Parrish said. “So I think we’re going to have that advantage going against a lot of these new teams that have their starting five that are all transfers.”