PARK CITY, Utah (AP) — A Utah woman who authorities say fatally poisoned her husband and then published a children's book about coping with grief will appear in court Monday for the start of a multi-day hearing that will determine whether prosecutors have enough evidence against her to proceed with a trial.
Kouri Richins, 34, faces multiple charges for allegedly killing her husband with a lethal dose of fentanyl in March 2022 at their home in a small mountain town near Park City. Prosecutors say she laced five times the lethal dose of the synthetic opioid into a Moscow Mule cocktail that Eric Richins, 39, drank.
In March, additional charges were filed accusing her of attempting to kill him with a spiked sandwich on Valentine's Day. She has been adamant about her innocence.
Utah State Judge Richard Mrazik had postponed the hearing in May after prosecutors said they would need three consecutive days to present their evidence. The case was further delayed when Kouri Richins' private attorney team withdrew from representing her. Mrazik determined she could no longer afford private representation and appointed public defenders Wendy Lewis and Kathy Nester to take over her case.
In the months leading up to her May 2023 arrest, the mother of three self-published a children’s book about a father with angel wings who watches over his young son after he dies. The book could play a key role in prosecutors’ attempt to portray Eric Richins’ death as a calculated murder with an elaborate cover-up. Prosecutors have accused Kouri Richins of making secret financial arrangements and buying the illegal drug when her husband became suspicious of her.
Both the defense and prosecution plan to call witnesses and introduce evidence to flesh out their stories in the case. Mrazik is expected to decide after the hearing whether the state has presented enough evidence to proceed with a trial.
Witnesses who may be called include family members of the suspect and her late husband, a housekeeper who claims to have sold the drugs to Kouri Richins, and friends of Eric Richins who made phone calls from the day prosecutors say he was first poisoned by his wife of nine years.
Kouri Richins' former lead defense attorney, Skye Lazaro, argued that the housekeeper had a motive to lie when she sought leniency on the drug charges. She also argued that Eric Richins' sisters had a clear bias against her client because of a dispute over his estate and a concurrent assault charge.
A petition filed by his sister, Katie Richins, alleges that Kouri Richins had financial motives for killing her husband. Prosecutors allege that she took out life insurance policies worth nearly $2 million without his knowledge and mistakenly believed she would inherit his wealth under the terms of their prenuptial agreement.
In May, Kouri Richins was found guilty of a felony count of assaulting her other sister-in-law shortly after her husband's death. Amy Richins told the judge that Kouri Richins punched her in the face during an argument over access to her brother's safe.
In addition to aggravated murder, assault and drug possession, Kouri Richins is also charged with mortgage fraud, forgery and insurance fraud. She is alleged to have falsified loan applications and fraudulently claimed insurance benefits after her husband's death.
