PARK CITY, Utah (Court TV) — A children’s book author faces a potential life sentence if she’s convicted of murdering her husband.
Kouri Richins appears in court during her preliminary hearing on Aug. 26, 2024. (Court TV)
Kouri Richins, 35, is charged with aggravated murder, attempted criminal homicide and financial crimes in the death of Eric Richins, who died from a lethal dose of fentanyl in 2022. Prosecutors say Kouri added the powerful synthetic opioid to a Moscow mule that she gave Eric to drink.
In the months after her husband’s death, Kouri authored a children’s book on grief for her children. The book, titled “Are You With Me?” features a father with angel wings watching over his young son. Kouri and Eric shared three children together.
Prosecutors say that Kouri was having an affair at the time of Eric’s death and have also accused her of masterminding the murder for financial gain. She is separately facing other financial charges for allegedly taking out lines of credit on property she and her husband shared without his knowledge.
Kouri has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges. In pretrial filings, her defense team has argued that a key prosecution witness has changed their story and that the evidence against her is largely circumstantial.
TRIAL UPDATES
DAY 14 – 3/13/26
- LIVE STREAM: CHARGE CONFERENCE: UT v. Kouri Richins | Grief Author Murder Trial
- Attorneys will meet with the judge without the jury for a charge conference.
DAY 13 – 3/12/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri Richins – Day 13 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- Lead investigator, Det. Jeff O’Driscoll returned to the stand.
- The state rested its case-in-chief.
- The judge denied a motion for directed verdicts on all five counts.
- The defense attempted to admit evidence of an interaction with David Norris, an individual who claims that Eric Richins asked him about obtaining fentanyl.
- The judge warned the defense that if it passed the foundation to admit the evidence (not through Driscoll) that it would open the door to previous testimony that he supressed.
- If Norris’ statement came in, prosecutors were prepared to rebut with statements from Hayden Jeffs, the defendant’s handyman, who told investigators that Kouri was asking him about fentanyl, and Nick Bonsavage, who in a jail call said that Carmen Lauber made money selling fentanyl.
- The defense declined to pursue the line of questioning.
- Kouri Richins said she would not testify.
- The defense rested its case-in-chief.
DAY 12 – 3/11/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri RIchins – Day 12 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- Housekeeper Carmen Lauber was recalled to the stand.
- She faced questions about new information relating to her drug court violations.
- Lauber admitted to possessing a firearm, alcohol consumption, and not complying with her curfew — violations of drug court conditions.
- Det. Jeff O’Driscoll was recalled.
- The state’s final witness was recalled to testify about his investigation and the evidence they uncovered that raised suspicions about Kouri Richins’ role in her husband’s death, including a book she authored to help her children cope with the loss of their father.
- O’Driscoll testified that a few weeks after her husband died, Kouri pitched ‘Good Things Utah,’ a local morning show, for a chance to promote the children’s book, “Are You With Me?”
- Emails to show producers, a picture of her appearance on the show and the cover of the book were shown to the jury.
- O’Driscoll testified to a letter they recovered in September 2023, referred to as the “Walk the Dog Letter,” in which Kouri appeared to be encouraging her mother to speak to her brother about how Eric obtained pain pills from Mexico, and how he kept them in an allergy pill bottle in his truck.
- Jurors heard jail calls between Kouri and her brother, in which Kouri ridiculed the allegation that she tried to poison her husband with a sandwich she left in his truck on Valentine’s Day with a love note.
- O’Driscoll was also questioned about the context in which he and his partner appeared to pressure Lauber into connecting Kouri to fentanyl with the promise of a ‘get out of jail free’ card.
- O’Driscoll testified that they stressed to Lauber that they needed to corroborate her story. On cross, O’Driscoll conceded that they told her that Eric had passed from a fentanyl overdose.
DAY 11 – 3/10/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri RIchins – Day 11 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- Unresolved legal issues forced the Court to send the jury home and recess early for the day to allow attorneys to review a transcript of Carmen Lauber’s statement to law enforcement.
- The state is seeking to admit portions of the 1000-page transcript and video of Lauber’s interview with the police to counter the defense’s contention that her testimony was inconsistent with her previous statement and that she was unduly influenced by her handlers.
- In the interest of efficiency, the State said it has shaved off a good portion of the statement and seeks to admit about 100 pages of the document. The defense protested, arguing it was inappropriate for prosecutors to admit Lauber’s statements through Detective Jeff O’Driscoll, who was on deck to testify.
- After a short break, the judge ruled against the defense, finding no legal authority that would bar a prior consistent statement from being admitted by anyone other than the declarant. The defense then requested a continuance to review the transcript for portions the prosecution seeks to publish.
- The judge reviewed a transcript of Richins’ interview with Detective O’Driscoll and jail calls between Richins and family members.
DAY 10 – 3/9/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri RIchins – Day 10 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- Prosecutors played the defendant’s call to 911 after she discovered her husband in their bed cold and not breathing.
- Cody Wright – Eric Richins’ business partner testified he had not known Eric to take prescription or illicit drugs but knew that he had suffered from COVID and Lyme Disease but tended to power through any injury and sickness.
- Wright said Eric called him on Valentines Day 2022 with ‘fear and urgency’ in his voice. He had not heard him sound that way except on two previous occasions when he told him his mother had passed and another time when he had been rear-ended and thought the driver had died in the collision. Prosecutors contend Eric fell ill on that day because Kouri attempted to poison him.
- The judge barred the defense from attempting to impeach Wright’s testimony with a previous statement in which he said he heard that Eric was popping pain pills and ‘red devils,’ which he understood was Sudafed. Defense Wright’s previous testimony goes to the heart of their theory that Eric had a drug problem.
- Judge drew a distinction between pain pills, prescription pills and illicit drugs. Wright’s previous testimony did not suggest that Eric was abusing illicit drugs, and ruled against the testimony coming in.
- On cross Wright agreed Eric’s phone call to him on Valentine’s Day was not alarming enough for him to take him to the doctor or a hospital.
- Also, on cross Wright testified that Eric loved to hunt. He testified that he cooperated with authorities after Eric allegedly violated hunting laws while killing an elk. Eric was banned from hunting for a period, during which time he went to Mexico to hunt.
- Matthew Throckmorton a forensic document examiner testified that it was not Eric’s signature on a life insurance policy purchased a few weeks before his death. On cross defense suggested that Eric gave his wife permission to sign the document for him.
- Jayme Woody the lead detective on call that night said Amy Richins told her before she entered the house that Eric told her Kouri had threatened to kill him.
- Todd Gabler the private investigator the Richins family hired testified he examined the call records of Eric and Kouri and discovered a high volume of calls between Kouri Richins and Carmen Lauber.
- On cross defense suggested the PI ignored Eric’s sexting messages and suggestions that Kouri and he had an ‘open marriage,’ which he said was just a joke.
DAY 9 – 3/5/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri Richins – Day 9 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- Kouri Richins consulted a divorce attorney in the months leading up to Eric’s death, but ultimately did not file and the bulk of the $5k retainer she paid the lawyer was refunded.
- The jury heard a phone call Kouri had with Eric’s best friend, Bryce, in the few weeks after her husband’s death, in which she complained about losing her house to her sister-in-law and the Richins’ family criticism and mistrust of her.
- Close friends of the couple described their observations of Kouri and Eric and the conversations they had in the weeks and months leading up to Eric’s death.
DAY 8 – 3/4/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri Richins – Day 8 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- Kouri Richins’ boyfriend testified that the two were in love and planning a trip together in April 2022 – but things changed between them after Eric Richins passed, and by the end of the year, they stopped seeing each other.
- Eric Richins consulted a divorce attorney in October of 2020, but ultimately did not file for divorce and instead, unbeknownst to Kouri, set up a trust for all his assets, including the house he shared with Kouri, and made his sister the trustee.
- An Estate Lawyer testified that Eric set up the trust because Kouri allegedly misused her power of attorney to take out a $ 250k line of credit in his name.
- Insurance reps testified that in January of 2022, there were changes to the business policy that insured the lives of partners Cody Wright and Eric Richins. The beneficiary on Wright’s policy was changed from Eric to Kouri, then back to Eric. The changes were made using Eric’s login, but from Kouri’s email.
DAY 7 – 3/3/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri Richins – Day 7 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- In the months leading up to Eric Richins’ death, Kouri Richins’ Realty Company was in dire financial trouble, running out of funding options to cover loans and debts incurred from the purchase and rehab of properties.
- “As of the date that Eric Richins died, Kouri Richins was in financial distress, and her financial enterprise was collapsing, but for a significant infusion of cash and capital, it would have continued to collapse,” said Brooke Karrington, a forensic accountant testifying for the prosecution. “It was imploding. Her debts and liabilities outweighed her assets. Even if she sold everything, it would not be enough to get to zero.”
- Karrington analyzed Kouri’s personal and business accounts, billing the State at least 200K for her work in reviewing the defendant’s finances. She testified that Kouri received $1.3 million in death benefits from insurance policies, of which she spent about half in a few months settling debts.
- During the period between January 2021 and March 2022, Kouri bounced 236 checks to the tune of 360k and incurred $5,600 in overdraft fees. By March of 2022, she owed $8 million and was running out of new funding sources to service the debt. She had been borrowing from hard money lenders whose short-term loans came with balloon payments, high interest rates, and stiff penalties for non-payment. She was facing a lawsuit from one lender for nonpayment.
- In March of 2019, Kouri allegedly took out a 250k Home Equity Line of Credit, without her husband’s knowledge and started drawing on it in 2021. By the time Eric passed, she had maxed out the loan and made no significant payments toward reducing that debt.
- Karrington said Kouri also misrepresented her liabilities in her joint tax return with Eric. Karrington opined that by making her company look more profitable, she would be more successful at obtaining funding.
- On cross-examination, defense attorney Kathryn Nester suggested that the accountant had not considered a private arrangement between the couple in which Eric was a silent partner and investing in Kouri’s business. Nester also suggested that in the business of flipping houses, short-term loans are common because the objective is to rehab and sell as quickly as possible.
- Nester further suggested that the lender’s collateral was in the property itself, and the last property Kouri purchased, which Kouri sold for $2.9 million, sold for $3.4 million, without any rehabbing. Karrington claimed two minor investors in the project did not get their money back.
DAY 6 – 3/2/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri Richins – Day 6 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- The wife of Eric Richins’ business partner testified that on a vacation in February of 2019, Kouri revealed that she felt trapped in her marriage and worried that, because of a prenup, a divorce would leave her in financial straits.
- Jurors heard Kouri Richins’ call to the Medical Examiner inquiring about a supplemental report with the results of additional testing following the autopsy on her husband.
- A forensic examination of the defendant’s phone revealed search inquiries regarding deleting iPhone messages, death benefit insurance payouts, and fentanyl poisoning.
DAY 5 – 2/27/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri Richins – Day 5 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- Defense challenged Carmen Lauber’s testimony that she procured fentanyl for Kouri Richins noting her testimony was inconsistent with a previous statement she gave federal investigators in May 2023.
- Robert Crozier– Lauber’s supplier claimed he did not sell Fentanyl in early 2022 and that he recalled ‘one maybe 2’ occasions that he sold Roxies to Carmen Lauber.
- An undercover narcotics detective testified that Roxies sold on the street were commonly laced with Fentanyl–on cross, he conceded that he had never come across prescription-grade Roxies containing fentanyl.
- Defendant’s high school acquaintance testified she overheard a conversation that Kouri had with her boyfriend in which she asked for something on behalf of her client.
DAY 4 – 2/26/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri Richins – Day 4 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- Chelsea Gipson, Lead evidence technician, Summit Co. Sheriff’s Office, returned to the stand
- Returned to search the house at least 10 times after Eric’s death; did not search his work truck or retrieve any items from the work truck.
- Went back to collect a letter that was pictured on the bed, which had not been collected on seven previous searches.
- Went back to collect a black jacket, which contained tweezers and plastic.
- Both times (letter and jacket), Gipson returned to collect items flagged by a private investigator hired by the family.
- Brianna Peterson, Toxicologist, NMS Labs
- Testified that testing revealed 15 nanograms/ml of fentanyl in a sample of Eric’s blood — five times the minimum level of a fatal dose of fentanyl.
- Also found ethanol, quetiapine, and acetyl fentanyl in his system. Acetyl fentanyl is synthetic fentanyl and considered an illicit drug. Quetiapine is the generic name for the drug Seroquel.
- On cross, the defense noted that the presence of norfentanyl, a fentanyl metabolite, in Eric’s system, which could mean he had used the drug previously, since a single dose could have killed him before the drug had a chance to metabolize.
- Defense also suggested the presence of ethanol in Eric’s stomach could be possible if he ingested alcohol about 30 minutes after he ingested fentanyl.
- Det. Frank Root, Summit County Sheriff’s Office
- Retrieved two inoperable phones from the defendant’s lover.
- Cheney Eng,-Tow, forensic digital analyst
- Downloaded the data from two Apple phones; the passcodes were provided.
- Brian Holden, Forensic Scientist, Utah State Crime Lab
- Tested 19 items for the presence of fentanyl.
- Did not test the empty hydrocodone bottle.
- Carmen Lauber, family’s former housekeeper
- Testified that she purchased illegal drugs for Kouri on four occasions.
- WATCH: Former Family Housekeeper Says She Sold Fentanyl to Kouri Richins
- MORE: Kouri Richins asked for the ‘Michael Jackson stuff,’ housekeeper testifies
DAY 3 – 2/25/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri Richins – Day 3 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- The judge abruptly ended testimony today after returning from an extended morning break. He gave no reason for the cessation of proceedings, except to say that he had to deal with a matter unrelated to Kouri Richins’ trial and dismissed the jurors with his usual admonition not to discuss, watch, or listen to anything about the case.
- Before recessing for the day, jurors heard some of the defense’s cross-examination of Chelsea Gipson, who was tasked with collecting evidence from multiple searches of the Richins home, including on the day Eric Richins died.
- Defense attorney Kathryn Nester began her cross-examination of Gipson by suggesting the evidence technician had not thoroughly documented or searched the home. Gipson agreed she did not enter, collect evidence or photograph the kitchen and the basement that night, where Nester suggested the Richins stored liquor.
- Earlier this week, jurors heard testimony from a K9 officer who said he never found THC gummies at the home despite his training in searches for illicit drugs. However, packs of THC gummies were recovered from the home in a subsequent search. Nester suggested the police missed them because they were stored in places out of reach of children.
- Nester also noted that Gipson had photographed but not collected the empty hydrocodone bottle for testing and raised the possibility that illicit drugs could be hidden in prescription pill bottles to mask their purpose, to which Gipson replied, “It could be considered.”
- Cross-examination resumes tomorrow when the court reconvenes for the continuation of the State’s case.
DAY 2 – 2/24/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri Richins – Day 2 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- Cameron Larson, Worked for ME’s office
- Dispatched to the Richins’ home to collect the decedent; she observed the decedent on the floor in boxers and a t-shirt covering his face.
- Photographed the body at the scene, collected his driver’s license and put it into the body bag, which was then sealed and tagged for transport to the medical examiner’s office.
- While at the Richins home, she was asked to look for alcohol; she searched the trash and found an empty bottle of Cock n’ Bull ginger beer — an ingredient frequently used to make a Moscow mule. Kouri said she made the cocktail for her husband before he died.
- David Pimentel, K9 officer, Summit Co. Sheriff’s Office
- Located three prescription drugs in the bathroom of the Richins’ home: naltrexone, hydrocodone and doxycycline.
- Naltrexone is a drug used to curb the desire for opioids; hydrocodone is used to treat pain.
- The officer said he did not find the THC gummies that Kouri said her husband may have taken; as a K9 officer, he is trained to locate illicit drugs.
- He did not search the home outside of the master bedroom and bathroom.
- Located three prescription drugs in the bathroom of the Richins’ home: naltrexone, hydrocodone and doxycycline.
- Margaret Offret, Advanced EMT
- Arrived to find the patient lying at the foot of the bed. She normally finds patients on the side of the bed.
- Observed his body was “straight.” This is unusual because she normally finds her patients angled.
- Offret observed blood coming from the decedent’s mouth — what she thought was more than what she had expected to find.
- She was the one to inform the defendant that her husband had passed; she agreed that people who receive such news can display a range of emotions.
- WATCH: EMT: Upon Arrival Eric Richins Was ‘Cold to the Touch… He Was Flatlined’
- Sgt. Andy Cernich, Summit County Sheriff’s Office
- Dispatched to the Richins’ home as a first responder/firefighter — has training as an advanced EMT.
- Observed that Eric had been dead for some time before medics attempted to resuscitate him.
- Maggie Mobley, Morgue Clerk
- Responsible for receiving and storing the body for autopsy.
- Dr. Pamela Sue Ulmer, Medical Examiner
- Performed autopsy on Eric Richins.
- Chelsea Gipson, Lead evidence technician, Summit Co. Sheriff’s Office
- Participated in three searches of the Richins’ home to collect evidence.
- Created 3D video walkthrough of house and recovered bags of THC gummies.
DAY 1 – 2/23/26
- LIVE STREAM: UT v. Kouri Richins – Day 1 | Grief Author Murder Trial
- Prosecutor Bradley Bloodworth opened for the State telling jurors that the evidence will show that Kouri Richins murdered her husband to inherit millions from his business and money from insurance policies so she could maintain the picture of affluence and success and start a new life with her boyfriend.
- Kathryn Nester opened for the defense claiming her client is innocent and the target of vindictive in-laws who went to great lengths to implicate her in her husband’s death, refusing to accept that Eric may have been treating chronic pain with illicit drugs that he may have obtained on a trip to Mexico a few weeks before his death.
- Bodycam video played for jurors reveal Kouri Richins’ reaction to her husband’s death after calling 911. Richins still dressed in pajamas recounts how she and her husband had a drink that night before going to bed to celebrate her closing on a $2 million dollar house she flipped. She said she went to comfort her son who was experiencing night terrors but returned to the room she shared with Eric at about 3:00 AM and found him on his back “cold and heavy” and not breathing.
- Prosecutors called the defendant’s in-laws; the victim’s father, sister, and her husband to testify about learning of Eric’s passing, and the observations they made of the defendant’s behavior that morning.
- WATCH: UT v. Kouri Richins: Key Moments from Day 1
