10:32 a.m. Court is taking a restroom break.
10:31 a.m. Burmester is asking follow up questions. Christensen says it was an online video call meeting, but he doesn’t remember who all was there. This happened the day before Kouri called Dr. Christensen. Christensen says there were no traces of any other illicit drugs other than fentanyl in Eric’s blood. He says there is no way to definitively know if Eric was a long time fentanyl user. The witness has been released.
10:28 a.m. Ramos says something unusual occurred in the investigation; he received communication from multiple law enforcement officers, and was invited to a meeting to discuss the case, where the DEA and prosecutors were involved. Christensen says this happens, but is not common. Ramos is done with his questioning.
10:25 a.m. Attorneys are back in their seats. Christensen says he is not aware of hair follicle tests being done in an autopsy for drug testing, because they are tasked with what’s at hand, not what has happened in the past. Ramos asks if he had sent out a hair follicle test, if he would’ve used the results in his determination of the manner of death. He says yes, it would be part of it.
10:22 a.m. Christensen says he did not contact law enforcement about Eric’s blood results, because he didn’t see anything concerning. Ramos reminds Christensen that Kouri told him that she was not aware that Eric had been using fentanyl in the phone call recording heard earlier. Attorneys are now taking a sidebar.
10:21 a.m. Ramos asks Christensen about things he wishes he would’ve done. He says literature suggests you could learn more if you test urine, which is not something medical examiner’s offices usually do. They often test blood. He says you an also test eye fluid, and the liver to understand what happened. Ramos asks about hair follicles. Christensen says with drug use, it’s used to evaluate the use over time.
10:15 a.m. Ramos asks Christensen about the port mortem comments. He says he doesn’t remember the specific numbers about Eric’s overdose. Christensen says there is no set level or number for when illicit drugs become fatal, it is different for everyone, but there is a “fixed fatal threshold.”
10:11 a.m. Christensen is describing what a counterfeit pill is. He says it is when people press their own pills that look similar to legitimate prescriptions. He says oxycodone pills that are almost completely made of fentanyl are very common.
10:07 a.m. Ramos asks Christensen about the allergen-like reactions that someone could have from fentanyl. He asks if someone is allergic to an opioid, if that allergy can disappear? Christensen says it can fluctuate, and the responses can go away. He says Eric’s body did not have hives. Ramos asks about “the pills” that would have fentanyl traces, and the defense objects.
10:04 a.m. Christensen says he does not have any concern about the cause of the death of Eric. Burmester is done with his questioning. Christensen is now being cross examined by Alex Ramos. Christensen says he received a call from law enforcement the day before he had a phone call with Kouri.
10:02 a.m. Burmester asks about pseudo-allergic reactions to opioids. Christensen says it does exist, similar to a peanut allergy. Opiates don’t elicit an allergic response, but some people have an “allergic-like” reaction. Some people can get hies, and similar allergy responses.
9:58 a.m. Christensen says nobody was eating fentanyl until counterfeit “street” pills appeared. Burmester asks Christensen if there were any injection sites on Eric, he says no. Christensen says some people become tolerant of opioids and take very large amounts, and not have the same effect as someone who doesn’t take it all the time. He says there was nothing to suggest Eric was a chronic user, due to the information they had at the time.
9:55 a.m. The recording is finished. Christensen says over the last 20 years, fentanyl deaths have increased significantly. He says almost all fentanyl deaths were due to prescription fentanyl being used incorrectly.
9:52 a.m. Kouri says she had no indication that Eric was using alcohol, and laughs. “It’s something for me to try and figure out, I guess.”
9:52 a.m. Kouri asks about Seroquel, an anti-psychotic medication that was found in Eric’s blood. Christensen says there was a lot found in his blood, but it doesn’t “mean very much.”
9:47 a.m. Kouri is asking Christensen questions about the substances found in Eric’s body after his death. Christensen tells Kouri that Eric’s overdose was probably taken orally or injected. He says people can die from even half the amount of fentanyl that was in his blood.
9:44 a.m. After Dr. Ulmer’s retirement, Christensen says he received a call from Kouri, but missed it. He later called her back. He says he listened to a recording of the call and read its transcript today. The state has asked to bring up the recording and transcript for the jury. It’s nine minutes long. We are hearing the recording between Dr. Christensen and Kouri.
9:42 a.m. Christensen says there is suggestive evidence that Eric ingested fentanyl orally, but there is no way to definitely know that. He says in a case where a person is believed to have smoked fentanyl and overdosed, you may see evidence of burns on their fingers or drug paraphernalia like tin foil nearby.
9:37 a.m. Christensen says essentially any opioid can make you drowsy, but fentanyl is much more potent than morphine, about 100 times more so. He says intravenous drug use can cause someone to die very quickly, but there is usually some level of metabolizing the drugs in the body before the person dies.
9:33 a.m. Christensen is now discussing the different ways people can ingest fentanyl. Injecting a liquid form, swallowing, etc. He says once it gets into the blood, it’s distributed throughout the body, and alters the way you think, can make you groggy or less than normally responsive. It’s lethal effects are effects on your breathing, and can cause death.
9:30 a.m. Christensen says he is an expert in forensic pathology. He is asked about how to determine the cause and the manner of a death. Richins seems to be taking lots of notes. Christensen says that he decided Eric Richins death was undetermined, but clarifies he was not the person to sign the death certificate, Dr. Ulmer was. He says at the time, they did not know if Eric overdosed on his own, or if someone had given him the drugs.
9:27 a.m The state has called Erik Christensen to the stand. He was the chief medical examiner for the State of Utah since July 2016, until his recent retirement. He supervised Dr. Ulmer.
9:22 a.m. Court is back in session. EastIdahoNews.com reporter Kaitlyn Hart here. I’ll be taking over the updates for Nate this morning, but he will be back a little later today.
8:43 a.m. Court is in recess for an undetermined period of time while these issues get worked out.
8:39 a.m. Defense and prosecution debating over a video transcript. It’s a 13-minute video. Judge asking prosecution to provide the video with a running transcript to the defense. Dr. Christensen and the video were two of the first things the prosecution wanted to present this morning.
8:36 a.m. Defense attorney Wendy Lewis objects to another witness the prosecution plans to call today – Lt. Davis. She says they added Davis to the witness list late last week and did not give enough notice. Prosecutor Brad Bloodworth says they are calling David to authenticate a video.
8:31 a.m. It’s day 6 of the Kouri Richins trial. So far the prosecution has called 21 witnesses. Defense attorney Alex Ramos is voicing concern that his team has not had an issue to consult with Dr. Christensen, a witness the prosecution plans to call. Defense says they have tried to reach him, but they never heard back from him. Judge Richard Mrazik says they can change order of witnesses today to allow defense time to chat with Christensen.
Kouri Richins, a Utah mother of three boys, is accused of fatally poisoning her husband, Eric Richins, in 2022. She is on trial in Summit County, Utah, on charges of aggravated murder, attempted aggravated murder, insurance fraud and forgery. Today is the sixth day of the trial. It is scheduled...
www.eastidahonews.com
