The case wrapped up with closing arguments highlighting the gravity of the charges against Kouri Richins.
Kouri married her husband, Eric, in 2013. At the time, she signed a prenuptial agreement that said several assets would remain in Eric’s ownership if they divorced, but she had some claim if he died while they were married. Included in that was 50% of Eric’s business, C&E Stone Masonry, LLC.
Several years after their marriage, in 2019, Kouri borrowed $250,000 without Eric’s permission, according to a lawsuit. She claims she later repaid the money, but Eric’s sister says that Kouri never did. Over the next few years, as Kouri worked on her real estate business, she faced mounting debt.
In October 2020, Eric consulted with a divorce lawyer and then with an estate planning lawyer. He opened the Eric Richins Living Trust, which, in the event of his death, placed his estate under the control of his sister Katie Richins-Benson for the primary benefit of his three children. He also transferred his partnership interest in his business to his trust.
During 2020, according to testimony during Kouri’s trial, she was involved in an affair with Robert “Josh” Grossman. The two discussed their dreams of living together, and Grossman worked with Kouri flipping houses.
In early 2022, investigators say that Kouri contacted a friend to purchase medication. They claim she purchased hydrocodone pills for “an investor,” and later asked for something stronger like the “Michael Jackson stuff.”
Kouri’s housekeeper, Carmen Lauber, testified that she purchased fentanyl pills for Kouri. On Feb. 14, 2022, Eric told two friends that he was feeling very ill, one of them testifying that he sounded serious and scared. Eric would later joke that his wife attempted to poison him, but investigators believed that Kouri was attempting to kill him on this day, and he survived.
Lauber testified that following Valentine’s Day, Kouri purchased more fentanyl on Feb. 26, 2022.
On March 3, 2022, Kouri stated that she and Eric had drinks to celebrate her closing on a property in Midway. She said she made Eric a Moscow Mule in the kitchen, and he drank it in bed and took a THC gummy.
After one of her sons had a nightmare, Kouri went to sleep in her childrens’ room. In the middle of the night on March 4, 2022, she called 911 to report that she found Eric cold in their bed. Following an autopsy, it was determined that Eric died from an overdose of fentanyl.
In March 2023, Kouri published a children’s book called “Are You With Me?” that follows a young boy grappling with the loss of his father. She appeared on Good Things Utah, KTVX’s lifestyle show, and told the hosts that she wrote it to help her children cope with the “unexpected” death of their father.
On May 8, 2023, she was arrested for the murder of her husband, Eric Richins.
Trial arguments
Kouri Richins trial summit county Utah. Eric Richins Family members. Katie Richins Benson sister. (Courtesy: The Park Record) The prosecution and defense presented their opening arguments on the first day of the trial. The state said that its evidence will show that Kouri Richins murdered her husband for financial gain so that she could start a new life.
The defense opened up its case with a call from Kouri, crying to the police after discovering Eric’s body. “Those were the sounds of a wife becoming a widow,” they said.
Eric Richins’ father was called to the stand as a witness, followed by his sister and his brother-in-law. They were questioned regarding their actions following Eric’s death and what they knew of his relationship with Kouri prior.
Over the next several days of the trial, law enforcement and forensic witnesses were called to the stand, all involved in the investigation of Eric’s death. Attorneys asked questions regarding whether drug paraphernalia and alcohol were found in the home, and how investigators performed the initial search of the residence.
Lauber, the Richins’ former housekeeper, who allegedly purchased fentanyl for Kouri, testified. During cross-examination, conflicting statements from her testimony and past interviews with investigators were called into question.
Robert Crozier was then called to the stand. He testified that he started dealing drugs in 2020 and was actively doing so in early 2022, and sold pills to Lauber during that time. He denied ever selling fentanyl to Lauber, however.
A former law enforcement officer who reviews cell phone extractions then testified regarding three phones belonging to Kouri, a phone belonging to Eric, a phone belonging to Carmen Lauber, a phone belonging to Josh Grossman, and phone records related to Robert Crozier.
The prosecution called life insurance professionals, the divorce attorney that Eric consulted with, and an estate planner who helped Eric organize his will and trust. They also called Grossman, the alleged boyfriend of Kouri, who testified about their relationship. The court reviewed numerous text messages between the two before and after Eric’s death.
One of Kouri’s friends recalled her saying that things would be better if Eric “were dead,” and another recalled Eric telling a “funny story” about Kouri trying to poison him on Valentine’s Day. A friend of Eric took the stand to testify about a concerning phone call he received from him that day.
Lead investigator Jeff O’Driscoll testified about the three possible causes he saw for Eric’s death: that it was an accidental overdose, that it was an intentional suicide, or that someone else administered it to Eric to kill him.
The prosecution rested its case. The defense also rested its case, and Kouri waived her right to testify.
During closing arguments, the prosecution stated, “The evidence proves that Kouri Richins murdered, attempted to murder, Eric Richins.” They argued that Kouri wanted to appear successful, and that she “wanted to leave Eric, but did not want to leave his money.”
The defense said the opposite during closing arguments. They argued that Kouri was being judged for the worst moment of her life, when she was grieving the sudden loss of her husband. The defense affirmed that the prosecution does not have enough evidence to prove that Kouri killed her husband.
