Judge Fran Gull to Retire After Decades of Service
FORT WAYNE, Ind — Judge Fran Gull has shaped the Allen County courthouse for nearly three decades, and now she’s ready to step away. She plans to retire when her term ends in December 2026.
She’s not running again because she knows she wouldn’t be able to serve another full six-year term. She calls serving Allen County and the state as a criminal court judge “the honor of my life” and takes pride in the strong court system she and her colleagues built.
Many people outside Allen County know her from the Delphi murders trial, which captured national attention as investigators worked to solve the deaths of Libby German and Abby Williams. Richard Allen was arrested, convicted in 2024, and sentenced to 130 years.
Gull first won a crowded election in 1996 and never faced another challenger in the four elections that followed. She trusts voters to choose the right person to carry on her work.
Her influence extends far beyond headline cases. She helped create the county’s Drug Court Program, focusing on both treatment and accountability, and in 2013 she co-founded the first Joint Veterans’ Treatment Court to give veterans in the justice system the support they weren’t getting before.
