The grief author murder trial continues into day 5, concluding the week-long testimony of state witnesses and experts. Kouri Richins, 35, is facing a potential life sentence for the aggravated and senseless murder of her husband, Eric Richins, who was found to have overdosed in their home in 2022.

Murder Charges

Richins was charged with aggravated murder and attempted criminal homicide. Among other things, she is accused of several financial crimes in the death of her husband, and the prosecution claims Richins murdered him to inherit his fortune and start a new life with her new beau. They allege she poisoned Eric with a powerful synthetic opioid known as fentanyl by putting it in his Moscow mule the night he died. 

In the months following her husband’s death, Richins authored and published a children’s book on grief for her children, hoping it would help them find some type of relief. The book, titled “Are You With Me?” is a hard one to find after her arrest was publicized and true crime junkies became fascinated with this hard piece of evidence.

Prosecutors allege that Richins was involved in an extramarital affair when her husband died, and accuse her of masterminding the murder so she could take all the money they shared, and what she would inherit if he passed. The financial charges against her are taking out lines of credit on property that the two shared without her husband’s knowledge.

Nonetheless, Richins has remained stoic throughout her week of trial and continues to maintain her innocence. She pleaded not guilty to all charges, but if convicted, she could be sentenced to life in prison. 

Cross-Examination

Wednesday was a bit unexpected for those appearing in court. The judge ordered an extended break, and upon his return, he abruptly ended testimony without further explanation, but confirmed it had nothing to do with Richins’ trial. 

However, before recessing, jurors listened to the defense cross-examine Chelsea Gipson, Summit County Sheriff’s Office Lead evidence technician. Gipson was responsible for collecting evidence upon her many searches of the Richins’ home, including the day Eric was found dead.

Defense attorney Kathryn Nester suggested that the evidence showed that Gipson did not thoroughly document the evidence collected nor search the home properly. Gipson confirmed that she did not search or collect evidence from several areas of the home that day, including the kitchen and basement, where Nester said the Richins may have stored liquor.

Nester continued to suggest further that the police missed several key items, such as the THC gummies that were later recovered in a subsequent search. Gipson also photographed the empty hydrocodone bottle but failed to collect it for testing, asserting illicit drugs could have been hidden inside to mask their purpose. “It could be considered,” Gipson said. 

Gipson returned to the stand on Thursday to continue the cross-examination, and she confirmed she searched the Richins’ home at least 10 times after Eric’s death but did not search or recover items in his work truck. She continued to return to the house, collecting several pieces of evidence that were flagged by Eric’s family’s hired private investigator, such as a letter and a black jacket with tweezers and plastic.

Further Witness Testimony

A toxicologist from NMS Labs, Brianna Peterson, testified that they tested Eric’s blood, which revealed 15 nanograms/ml of fentanyl in his system, which is five times the minimum level of a fatal overdose. They also found more illicit drugs, including ethanol, quetiapine, and acetyl fentanyl. 

When the defense cross-examined, they noted that norfentanyl was found, meaning he had used the drug previously, and giving it a chance to metabolize, a single dose could have killed him. Also, if he ingested alcohol just a half hour after taking fentanyl, it would explain the ethanol.

The Utah State Crime Lab also tested 19 items for the presence of fentanyl, but did not test the hydrocodone bottle defense referenced, which could have been a cover for more illicit drugs. However, the family’s former housekeeper, Carmen Lauber, testified as well that Kouri Richins had purchased illegal drugs from her on four separate occasions.