UT - Kouri Richins, 33, Author, wife, mom, charged in husband’s “unexpected” death last year, May 2023

[iluvmua]

What a piece of work!

 

[arielilane]

After her husband died last year, Kouri Richins wrote a children’s book that she said she hoped would help her three sons process the loss. She was charged on Monday with murdering her husband by poisoning him with a lethal dose of fentanyl.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1656036353727971336

She Wrote of Grief After Her Husband Died. Now She’s Charged in His Murder. (Published 2023)

Kouri Richins wrote a children’s book to help her three sons process their father’s sudden death, she said. Prosecutors said this week that she poisoned him with a lethal dose of fentanyl.

www.nytimes.com

After Kouri Richins’s husband, Eric, died suddenly last year, she wrote a children’s book that she said she hoped would help her three boys process the loss, comforted by the knowledge that their father would always be with them.

On Monday, a little over two months since the book — “Are You With Me?” — was published, Ms. Richins, 33, was charged with murdering her husband by poisoning him with a lethal dose of fentanyl at their home outside Park City, Utah.

An autopsy and toxicology report determined that Mr. Richins, 39, had five times the lethal dosage of fentanyl in his system, and that the drug was illicit and not medical grade. The medical examiner also concluded that the fentanyl had been ingested orally, according to court documents.

Ms. Richins published “Are You With Me?” on March 7, just over a year after her husband’s death. A few weeks later, she appeared on KTVX-TV in Salt Lake City to promote the book, which follows the story of a boy who lost his father but is reminded of his presence.

“My kids and I wrote this book on the different emotions and grieving process that we’ve experienced in the last year, hoping it could help other kids deal with this and kind of find happiness someway or another,” Ms. Richins told KTVX. “It’s comforting for them that they’re not living this life alone. Dad is still here, but in a different way.”

A detention hearing is set for May 19. A lawyer for Ms. Richins did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

 

[arielilane]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2023/05/09/kouri-richins-utah-author-murder-book/

When she published a children’s book almost a year after her husband’s death, Kouri Richins wanted to help kids struggling to cope with the loss of a loved one. The Utah mother of three was facing her own grief when she wrote the picture book after her husband, Eric Richins, died in March 2022, she said.


“It completely took us all by shock,” Richins said in April while promoting her book, “Are You With Me?” In an interview with KTVX, an ABC affiliate in Salt Lake City, she added: “It’s — you know — explaining to my kid just because he’s not present here with us physically, doesn’t mean his presence isn’t here with us.”


But after a month of praise from local media for helping children deal with grief, Richins’s story took a dark turn. She has been charged with her husband’s murder, accused of poisoning him with a lethal dose of fentanyl.

 

[arielilane]

‘The Grand Home’: Kouri Richins’ unfinished Midway mansion could have buyer

A mansion that broke ground in 2017—but was never finished—has been a longtime roadside curiosity in Midway. And now it’s at the center of a man’s death, which prosecutors allege was murder.

www.kpcw.org

The video shows the ultimate vision for the 8-bed and 11.5-bath property: a therapy pool, full-sized pool, exercise room, golf simulator, indoor volleyball court and room designed for virtual reality installations.

If the buyer doesn’t close, Malmrose said he “doesn’t know what the plan B would be.” But he indicated a couple other buyers were interested.

That would be good news for Kouri, who retained not only criminal defense attorney Skye Lazaro but also bankruptcy attorney Austin Nate.

Neither attorney responded to requests for comment about Kouri’s pending murder case at the time of this report.

 

[gitana1]

Thanks for clarifying !
I could only find a LinkedIn that seemed to be the perp.
"Kouri" is a bit of an unusual name.
Maybe pronounced "Corey" ?

About your comment ... maybe she had some 'help' ?
They need to investigate this.
It sounds from the article that a person left some pills at a house, that she was flipping in exchange for cash (the pills, not the house).
Need to check that out as well !
Maybe more arrests are looming ?

Somehow this normal-appearing woman, wife, & mother was able to get her hands on enough drugs to kill someone.
And if she was standing on a street corner , hustling in a derelict area, that would get her noticed !
Sooo... another mom ... or a boyfriend ??
This plot involves more than just Kouri.
IMO.
M00.

Utah names. They’re very interesting. Odd spelling and unusual names. I think it is pronounced “Corey.”

 

[ifindedout]

Utah names. They’re very interesting. Odd spelling and unusual names. I think it is pronounced “Corey.”

Sounds like KUTV and NewsNation Now agree (as did I from the beginning, BTW):

 

[BrownRice]

Unbelievable! I feel so sorry for her kids. Both parents gone now.

I can imagine Netflix doing a series about this.

This is the next Murdaugh case. Every news series will be after this.

 

[MinnyPin]

Kouri reminds me most of Shanna Gardner-Hernandez (Jared Bridegan murder) and wasn’t there an LDS connection there as well? Literally the same callous disregard for human life… same behavior after her ex-husband’s death.

 

[arielilane]

YT video with a family friend (reacts to Kouri's arrest) pronounced her name as "Corey."

 

[ifindedout]

I’m pretty sure the LDS church also frowns on consumption of Moscow Mules, and yet here we are…

Moscow Mule on Wiki:

Moscow mule - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[fred&edna]

I'm assuming Kouri's side of the story will be... her husband had a "hidden" drug problem due to all the accidents/injuries (per the obit we've seen) and she obtained the fentanyl per his request... she had nothing to do with his death.

 

[Seattle1]

That would be good news for Kouri, who retained not only criminal defense attorney Skye Lazaro but also bankruptcy attorney Austin Nate.

^^rsbm

I dunno... whenever I read white-collar criminal defense attorney, I prepare for a defense very heavy on civil rights and court procedure so I hope the prosecutors here are prepared for a well-heeled defense that will bury them in paperwork and scream discovery violation (and pray for Court sanctions) beginning with the first appearance (i.e., deja vu Iris Eytan)! JMO

Skye Lazaro

Skye Lazaro is an experienced corporate and criminal defense attorney. She is Chair of the Firm’s White Collar, Criminal Defense & Government Investigations, and Cannabis Law Groups. She represents companies and individuals in all facets of government investigations, including political...

rqn.com

 

[neesaki]

Has anybody scooped the unnamed party found deceased last Sept at the "compound" the wife purchased around the time of her husband's death?

Did somebody want this party silenced?

This is my question too! Not to mention, what was the cause of death of the widows husband ? I checked property records and couldn’t find anything.
Keep in mind we can’t officially sleuth them Though.
The main reason I bring this up, is because….. what if this perp had something to do with that man’s death. He was a young man. Seem odd to you? Just sayin’. And JMO crazy opinion.

 

[Kittybunny]

A second book was (is?) in the pipeline, along with tweaks to the first:

A second book, “Mom, How Far Away is Heaven?,” will be published by May. Richins said they are also working on different variations of the first book where the main character is a girl who has lost her mother and a child who has lost a sibling.

Her second book should be retitled "Mom, How Long is Your Prison Sentence?" a tragedy where the main character is a horrible greedy woman who robbed her children of both their parents.

 

[neesaki]

Reading the article above your post I read it as the unattended death occurred in Sept 2019, between the old owner starting work and him losing interest by the end of 2019. They didn't buy it until January 2022, so this would be different than the one she signed on the day after his death? From my interpretation at least?

The unattended death was with the original owner/ developer, D. Roylance.
The second death, was the husband of the young couple who bought it from D.R.
I am concerned with the cause of death of the second owner. I haven’t had a chance to research much. Has anyone else?

 

[neesaki]

I'm behind. She assaulted Eric's sister?!

Summit County mom arrested for husband's murder

ETA: A quote from the linked report

Kouri closed on the home the day after Eric’s death. That same day she invited friends over for what a search warrant called “a large party at her home where she was drinking and celebrating.”

The warrant goes on to say she “assaulted” Eric's sister, who showed up to the home.

“Up until that point, according to the family, Kouri had no idea she had been replaced in the will and Eric’s sister was put in charge of his estate, including the home, which made her financially unstable,” the warrant states.

On March 28, a few weeks after Eric’s death, Kouri sued Eric's sister for control over his estate. She claims their prenuptial agreement entitles her to the money, family home and other assets.

Re: bolded: I doubt she’s entitled to anything after MURDERING him. Just sayin’.

 

[Seattle1]

This is my question too! Not to mention, what was the cause of death of the widows husband ? I checked property records and couldn’t find anything.
Keep in mind we can’t officially sleuth them Though.
The main reason I bring this up, is because….. what if this perp had something to do with that man’s death. He was a young man. Seem odd to you? Just sayin’. And JMO crazy opinion.

Eric's cause of death per the AA was a lethal dose of street grade Fentanyl -- 5 x the lethal dosage. No idea about the identity or cause of death of the unattended death at the "compound" build location in Sept 2019 2021.

 

[MyJoey]

Following …….I’m always shocked, I should be over that by now but WOW

 

[ch_13]

This is my question too! Not to mention, what was the cause of death of the widows husband ? I checked property records and couldn’t find anything.
Keep in mind we can’t officially sleuth them Though.
The main reason I bring this up, is because….. what if this perp had something to do with that man’s death. He was a young man. Seem odd to you? Just sayin’. And JMO crazy opinion.

The unattended death was with the original owner/ developer, D. Roylance.
The second death, was the husband of the young couple who bought it from D.R.
I am concerned with the cause of death of the second owner. I haven’t had a chance to research much. Has anyone else?

The linked article may be leading you to think there's yet another couple who's husband died. Actually, the young couple mentioned is Eric and Kouri Richins. She's the widow who bought the property.

The timeline here is:
2017 - Doug Roylance starts building home
2019 - Construction is paused and there's an 'unattended death', eventually the unfinished house is put on the market but doesn't sell for over two years
Jan 2022 - Kouri Richins's offer to buy house is accepted
Feb 14, 2022 - Eric Richins has an allergic reaction during Valentine's Day dinner and tells others that Kouri is trying to kill him
Mar 4, 2022 - Eric Richins dies of a fentanyl overdose, apparently administered by Kouri in a Moscow Mule
Mar 5, 2022 - Kouri Richins closes on house, and holds party where she learns that she is not the beneficiary of Eric's estate

 

[vls12345]

The linked article may be leading you to think there's yet another couple who's husband died. Actually, the young couple is Eric and Kouri Richins. She's the widow who bought the property.

The timeline here is:
2017 - Doug Roylance starts building home
2019 - Construction is paused and there's an 'unattended death', eventually the unfinished house is put on the market but doesn't sell for over two years
Jan 2022 - Kouri Richins's offer to buy house is accepted
Feb 14, 2022 - Eric Richins has an allergic reaction during Valentine's Day dinner and tells others that Kouri is trying to kill him
Mar 4, 2022 - Eric Richins dies of a fentanyl overdose, apparently administered by Kouri in a Moscow Mule
Mar 5, 2022 - Kouri Richins closes on home, and holds party where she learns that she is not the beneficiary of Eric's estate

Don't forget that Eric thought KR was trying to kill him a few years ago too (bbm):

[snip]

2News has uncovered a search warrant from April of 2022 in which investigators say they interviewed family members of Eric Richins. Those family members allegedly implicated Kouri in his death.

“While investigating the death I was told by Eric’s family member that they suspected his wife had something to do with his death,” an investigator wrote in the warrant. “They advised he warned them that if anything happened to him she was to blame.”

The warrant references a trip that Eric and Kouri Richins took to Greece and how Eric told a sister about an alleged attempt on his life.

“According to a sister, Eric and his wife went to Greece a few years ago and after his wife gave him a drink he became violently ill and called his sister saying he believed his wife had tried to kill him,” the warrant reads.

[snip]

Warrant: Utah murder victim told family if anything happened to him, his wife was to blame

A recently discovered search warrant in the death of Eric Richins spells out how family members immediately suspected his wife, Kouri Richins, of murder.

kutv.com