Attorneys prepare for lengthened murder trial for Kouri Richins
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Emily Ashcraft, KSL.com
PARK CITY, Utah (KSL.com) — Kouri Richins, a woman charged with murdering her husband before writing a children’s book about grief, returned to the courtroom on Thursday as attorneys discussed what needs to happen before her trial begins.
The trial was scheduled to start in the final week of April, but Richins’ attorney Kathy Nester said they intend to present a “fairly robust defense” with as many as 20 witnesses. She said this would take days of trial, and if Richins decides to testify, her testimony would be “quite lengthy.”
Deputy Summit County attorney Brad Bloodworth also said he was not sure if prosecutors could finish presenting their case in the eight days previously scheduled. An additional week was added to the trial, meaning jury selection will begin on April 21 instead of April 28.
During the pretrial conference on Thursday, attorneys set multiple other hearings in February, March and April to address the jury questionnaires and motions attorneys said they planned to file to talk about evidence at trial.
Nester said she plans to appeal a decision from the presiding judge in the 3rd District Court, Laura Scott, denying requests previously agreed to by prosecutors and 3rd District Judge Richard Mrazik to hold jury selection in person instead of virtually, and to call jurors from both Summit County and Salt Lake County.
Despite the desire to appeal that decision, Nester said no one on the case is interested in continuing the trial. She said everyone wants it to move forward in April and May.
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The jury during Richins’ scheduled trial will be asked to determine whether she is guilty of charges of aggravated murder and attempted murder, first-degree felonies; two counts of filing a fraudulent insurance claim, a second-degree felony; and one count of forgery, a third-degree felony.
Richins is also charged with two counts of mortgage fraud, a second-degree felony, and two additional counts of forgery, a third-degree felony. Mrazik ruled those charges are not directly related and should be addressed in a separate trial.
Kouri Richins was arrested over a year after calling dispatch to report her husband, Eric Richins, 39, was nonresponsive. She is accused of administering a fatal dose of fentanyl to Eric Richins on March 3 or 4, 2022, and has also been charged with giving a lethal dose of drugs to her husband on Valentine’s Day, less than three weeks before.