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After decades in the Allen County Courthouse, Superior Court Judge Fran Gull announced Monday she will retire at the end of this year.
Gull, who has served as judge over Allen’s criminal division for nearly 30 years, said she chose not to run for reelection because she knew she would not complete another six-year term.
“I’ve conducted over a thousand jury trials in my career, too many high-profile and notorious cases to name. Those cases are difficult and take a toll,” Gull said in a news release. “Now it is my opportunity to relax, spend time with family, friends, and my dogs, play with my grandchildren, expand my gardens, and travel.”
She said she looks forward to becoming a senior judge and helping her colleagues as needed, particularly in the Drug Court Program.
The Delphi double-murder trial, which received national media attention in 2024, was among the high-profile cases Gull presided over.
In that case, Richard Allen was sentenced to 130 years in prison for the 2017 murders of 13-year-old Abigail “Abby” Williams and 14-year-old Liberty “Libby” German.
But Gull’s renown goes beyond the specific cases she’s heard.
In 2015, the National Center for State Courts awarded Gull the G. Munsterman Award for Jury Innovation, a recognition of her efforts for jury reform in Indiana.
Those efforts included making the jury system more convenient for jurors. According to Indiana Court Times, Gull helped establish mJuror, a system allowing jurors to communicate with court administrators (and vice versa) through QR codes and texting.
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