LIVE UPDATES | Day 1 of Kouri Richins murder trial

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 first day of the trial. It is scheduled to begin each day at 8:30 a.m. East Idaho News will be posting live written updates all day. Please excuse typos. You can watch the livestream here.

9:59 a.m. Nester says the prosecution is going to assassinate Kouri this entire trial, “so get ready.” She says nobody is perfect, no marriage is perfect and the prosecution will spend days and weeks talking about problems in marriage, ups and downs, Kouri’s business, her bank accounts, etc. Nester says we are all flawed.

9:57 a.m. Nester says Kouri knew before Eric died that his assets were protected in a trust and there were legal things they had to go through. Nester says the Richins family hired a private investigator $100,000 “to spend every waking minute digging up as much dirt as they possibly could on Kouri Richins to implicate her in Eric’s death.” “The investigator goes looking for skeletons in the closet and boy does he find some,” Nester says. Nester says Kouri is not a perfect person, she’s a flawed person, “we all are.”

9:55 a.m. Kouri Richins repeatedly told police she didn’t know what happened. “Eric Richins family couldn’t accept that. They needed someone or something to blame. No family ever wants to believe that behind closed doors, someone is using drugs. The family’s need to make sense of Eric’s death went way beyond what you would expect a normal grieving family to go through,” Nester says.

9:52 a.m. No fentanyl was found in Eric’s bedroom, “but they didn’t search for it,” Nester says. Kouri says the cops never searched the house for fentanyl. All sorts of people were in the house and the cups were taken or tested. The day Eric died, police started interviewing Kouri “over and over and over again about what happened that night.” Nester says Kouri’s explanation about what happened that night never changed.

9:51 a.m. Eric had been dead for several hours and the medical examiner will testify to that, Nester says. Between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m., somewhere in that time, Eric Richins died. “Somewhere in that time, he ingested a fatal dose of fetantly. What you will never hear, after four years of investigation and five weeks of this trial, you will never hear how that fentanyl got inside of him because there is zero evidence of that.” Eric’s death certificate says the manner of his death is unknown, Nester says.

9:48 a.m. When Eric died, his Apple watch was hanging “nice and neat.” His phone was on the charger and he was in his underwear. “It would be pretty clear that Eric went to bed and died.” There was an empty bottle of pills in the nightstand next to Eric’s bed. The pill bottle expired in 2016. “That’s going to become important later.” After 3 a.m., Kouri wakes up and goes into the bedroom. The phone is unlocked and moves around the house. The phone stops being active, which is indicative of being in the charger. “A few minutes later, you hear the 911 call you just heard. That gives her enough time to crawl into the bed and touch her husband who is cold.”

9:44 a.m. Kouri and Eric decided to have celebratory shots around 9 p.m. and Kouri made Moscow mules. They didn’t finish the drinks. Around 9:30 p.m., Kouri went to sleep with her son who was having a nightmare. When police came to the house after he died, Kouri told the officers that Eric loved marijuana gummies. “He was a marijuana gummy eater,” Nester says. She shows a photo showing marijuana gummy packages. Nester says after she left her little boy’s room, Eric was talking to his friend Scott Wagner. When Scott spoke to Eric, he did not sound drunk, high, on fentanyl or anything else. “There was no sound of the wife or children in the background. He was alert, having a totally normal conversation with Scott. This was at 10 p.m.” When Kouri left the bedroom, she left her phone in the charger next to the bed. Around 10:30 p.m., Kouri’s phone is unlocked and moved just a few feet, Nester says. She says Eric was always checking Kouri’s phone “probably for good reason.”

9:42 a.m. Eric and Kouri loved their kids, Nester says, and the boys adored their dad. Their marriage had been through some rough times. They had gone through a tough year and they went through marriage counseling. They decided to stick it out. Nester says one of Eric’s closest friends who will say that Eric and Kouri were the happiest they had been. On March 3, Eric started sending exciting texts to Kouri saying they needed to have some celebratory shots. Nester shows text messages on the screen of the messages.

9:40 a.m. Nester explains the property was falling apart and Kouri got a good deal on it. The plan was to flip it for so much that Kouri would make at least $2 million profit for her and all her investors. Nester says Eric was a part of it. He had been out to the property. They had other things to celebrate, Nester says. Eric’s business was doing great. In 2020, he declared he made over $750,000. They also lived in a beautiful home, Nester says. They got married in the phone. Half was Kouri’s, half was Eric’s. They had a two-story garage filled with exotic animals. They had money for Eric to travel and hunt. Two weeks before he died, he was in Mexico hunting. They had four wheelers and snowmobiles. “They were very blessed. They had a lot to celebrate.”

9:37 a.m. Kathryn Nester will give the defense’s opening statement. She begins by playing the 911 call Kouri made. “My husband’s not breathing. He’s cold.” She is crying and gives the address and her phone number to the dispatcher. Dispatcher asks what happened. Kouri says she doesn’t know and is crying. Dispatcher tells her to take a deep breath. Kouri says she doesn’t know what going on. She got in bed and “he’s cold. He’s cold.” The dispatcher asks who is cold. She says her husband. Dispatcher asks if her husband is breathing. Kouri says no. Dispatcher asks Kouri if she can do CPR. Kouri says she doesn’t know how. Dispatcher says she will tell her how. Kathryn begins, “Those are the sounds of a wife becoming a widow. Six and a half hour before that terrible phone call, Eric and Kouri Richins were in that same bedroom and they were celebrating. They were celebrating because Kouri was about to close on the biggest deal she had ever done – the Midway Mansion.”

9:35 a.m. Back to the morning of March 4, 2022. Eric Richins is placed in a body bag and wheeled out of his home for the last time. His boys are upstairs with their uncle. Kouri Richins has not yet told them Eric is dead, and she won’t for a few hours, Bloodworth says. “On Kouri Richins phone, the following three images are accessed.” He showed three memes: One of a guy wiping his nose with money, one that says “Idiots, idiots everywhere” and another that says. “I’m rich!” Prosecution is done with opening statement.

9:33 a.m. Kouri Richins richly values her appearance, affluence, and success, Bloodworth says. The prosecutor highlights two of the judge’s instructions – stay focused on the evidence and take notes. “At the end of the trial, I’ll stand back up here and in closing arguments, we will analyze the evidence, we will apply it to the elements the judge instructed you on and the state of Utah will ask you to find Kouri Darden Richins guilty.”

9:30 a.m. When Kouri Richins knew police were investigating her, she wrote a children’s book about how to deal with death. Bloodworth says state will prove Kouri murdered Eric and that Eric did not kill himself. Evidence will prove Kouri had means, motive and opportunity to murder Eric Richins. “Please consider the evidence that proves no one else did.”

9:28 a.m. A few days after Eric’s death, Kouri drove to the mountains with her boyfriend. She asked if he had ever killed anyone. When he responded, she asked, “How did that make you feel?” Bloodworth says Kouri felt guilt after Eric’s death. There were searches on Kouri’s phone “Can copes uncover deleted messages iPhone” and other simliar searches about how to wipe an iphone, delete information from iPhone, etc.

9:26 a.m. On June 18, 2022, Kouri texted her friend about Valentine’s Day. “He never broke out in hives or used an epi pens! No hives, no epi pen!” Bloodworth says Kouri was an hour away with her boyfriend. On the morning of Eric’s death, she wrote in a notebook that she entered the room at 3:20 a.m. She wrote that she nudged Eric and nothing happened. She grabbed her phone and called 911. “She first grabbed her phone at least at 3:06 a.m. and delayed calling 911 at least 15 minutes,” Bloodworth says.

9:22 a.m. Bloodworth now talking about Carmen Lauber, Kouri Richins’ housecleaning. Kouri knew Carmen could get drugs, according to Bloodworth. Three days before Eric’s death, Bloodworth says Lauber got pills for Kouri. On Valentine’s Day, Kouri purchased a sandwich from the Mirror Lake Diner and left it for Eric. She then left Kamas and met up with Josh, her boyfriend, an hour away. At 11:33 that morning, Eric wrote, “I’m gonna lay down for a bit if I don’t start getting better I’m gonna head to the hospital.” Shortly thereafter, all activity on Eric’s cell phone stopped for nearly 90 minutes “in the middle of a busy work day,” Bloodworth says. Once activity resumed, Eric called his two best friends. They said he sounded scared, somber, confused, and bewildered. A few days after that, Kouri asked Carmen if she could get “something stronger.” Carmen did purchase pills from the same street dealer at Maverik in Draper, Utah. She left those pills that Kouri Richins was finishing up a rehab on. Those pills contained fentanyl. Autopsy showed Eric died of fentanyl poisoning. Seven times the lethal amount in his blood and more in his stomach. “It was intentional, not accidental.”

9:20 a.m. Bloodworth reads another message Kouri sent to Josh Grossman about them being together. Sixteen days after Eric’s death, she sent a link to a resort/spa to her boyfriend and said, “Are we there yet?” A month after Eric’s death, she texted Josh, ” I think I want you to be my husband one day.”

9:16 a.m. On the day Eric died, his inheritance was worth over $4 million, Bloodworth says. Kouri believed she would get it all. A prenuptial agreement would prevent her from getting the money if they divorced, but if he died while they were married, she would get it. “She needed Eric Richins money to get her fresh start at life. The evidence will prove that Kouri Richins was chronically unhappy in her marriage. She thought having children would make her happier, but it did not.” Bloodworth says she consulted with a divorce attorney months before his death. Before Eric died, Kouri booked an all-inclusive trip to the Caribbean for Kouri and her boyfriend. They were to check in a month after Eric died. Three weeks before Eric died, Kouri texted Josh Grossman, her boyfriend, and said, “If I were divorced right now and asked you to marry me tomorrow, you would? I just want to lay on the couch and cuddle you. Watch a murder documentary and snuggle.” Five days after the death, she texted, “Babe, I miss you. I want you today, every day. Not just sexually, but physically, mentally, every day when I wake up. I do want to be together. I do want you. Live our life out together. If he could just go away, and you could just be there, life would be so perfect. I love you idk what my deal is today. I’m sorry.”

9:14 a.m. Richins owed over 4.5 million dollars to over 20 different lenders on the day Eric died, Bloodworth says. She kept taking out loans to pay for the other loans. She sold houses and her new credit was drying up. In the five months leading to his death, she overdrew 200 transactions totaling over $300,000, Bloodworth says. On the day Eric died, Kouri was scheduled to close on an unfinished mansion in Midway and would take on an additional $3.2 million in debt. The mansion “was just a facade,” Bloodworth says.

9:13 a.m. Two weeks after Eric died, Richins submitted another fraudulent claim on Eric, Bloodworth says. He goes on to say he will summarize some of the evidence the state will show over the next few weeks. “The evidence will prove that Kouri Richins ordered Eric for his money and to get a fresh start at life. More than anything, she wanted his money to perpetuate her facade of privilege, affluence, and success.”

9:12 a.m. Bloodworth says two weeks before Richins murdered Eric, she tried to kill him. And two weeks before that, she took out a life insurance policy on Eric. Defense objects. Judge calls attorneys up for sidebar.

9:09 a.m. Bloodworth begins by showing a photo of the Richins’ family. He shows a meme on the screen that Richins’ boyfriend sent her that says, “Love you.” Bloodworth says Richins made Eric a drink and later went to check on him. He was cold. Bloodworth says Richins pulled out her cell phone several times but didn’t call 911 for a whole. Medics respond, they can’t revive Eric, her husband, and he is pronounced dead. They think he has been dead a while, Bloodworth says.

9:08 a.m. The court does not have transcripts of trial testimony so jurors will have to rely on their memory during deliberations. They can take notes. We will now have opening statements. Summit County Deputy Attorney Brad Bloodworth will give the state’s opening statement.

9:06 a.m. Mrazik says jurors have caused problems in the past by looking up information on trials on their phones. He tells them they can not use electronic devices to conduct their own investigation on the trial or if they communicate with others about the trial. “Please don’t Google the trial, counsel, etc. Don’t post updates on social media.” He tells them not to look up words they hear in the courtroom because something that simple could result in a mistrial.

9:04 a.m. Courtroom is packed. Judge continues to give instruction. He tells jury not to talk about the case during court recesses. He tells jurors not to speak with attorneys. “The goal is to avoid the impression that people are trying to influence you improperly.” Judge tells jurors not to listen to any news reports or visit any locations related to the case.

9:02 a.m. Opening statements and closing arguments are not evidence. Jurors are told not to make a decision on guilt or innocence until end of the trial. Sidenote Many people commenting online about Mrazik’s deep voice. He could host a radio show!

9 a.m. Judge explains that lawyers will present evidence, but neither the lawyers or the judge decide the case outcome. The jury does. Jury must make their decision based on the law and evidence.

8:59 a.m. Richins has pleaded not guilty to all charges and denies committing the crime. Judge tells jury the prosecution must prove each element beyond a reasonable doubt. Until then, the defendant must be presumed not guilty. She does not have to testify, call witnesses or present evidence. Prosecution has the burden of proving defendant guilty.

8:55 a.m. Six men and six women are on the jury. Richins sits quietly wearing a white blouse and black suit jacket. Hair is pulled back. Judge reads the charges: Count 1 – aggravated murder. March 3-4, 2022, the defendant is accused of intentionally or knowingly causing the death of Eric Richins. Court 2 – attempted aggravated murder. Count 3 – insurance fraud. Count 4 – insurance fraud. Count 5 – Forgery.

8:54 a.m. Jury is sworn in. Judge thanks jury for their patience. He gives instructions on how the trial will unfold and says more instructions will be given at the end of the trial.

8:52 a.m. Judge says to all spectators, “Every single time the jury comes in or leaves, we all stand.”

8:48 a.m. Mrazik will allow the witnesses to make the statements. Defense says they are renewing their objection to a final slide. Court stands by its decision to deny the objection. Judge asks Bloodworth and Nester to turn on their portable mics. Jury will be brought in.

8:46 a.m. Defense and prosecution debating over whether certain witnesses can say certain statements during their testimony. Defense attorney Wendy Lewis objects to some statements a witness the state plans to call may say.

8:44 a.m. Nester is the same attorney representing Tyler Robinson, the man accused of killing Charlie Kirk.

8:43 a.m. Defense attorney Kathryn Nester says the photos relate to the case. Mrazik says the photos are not prejudicial and will allow the photos.

8:40 a.m. Summit County Dep. Attorney Brad Bloodworth discussing housekeeping items concerning exhibits. State objects to two photos that the defense hopes to admit. Judge says the photos are consistent with the other evidence the defense has. Mrazik asks Bloodworth to “put a little more meat” on his objection. Bloodworth says the photos are of exotic animals that Eric hunted.

8:38 a.m. Prosecutors and defense attorney discusses the exclusionary rule concerning witnesses – whether some witnesses can/should remain in the courtroom versus others. Judge Richard Mrazik says court will take a short break after opening statements to get it sorted out.

8:31 a.m. Richins’ attorneys issued the following statement last week:

“Kouri has waited nearly three years for this moment: the opportunity to have the facts of this case heard by a jury, free from the prosecution’s narrative that has dominated headlines since her arrest. Now the state must prove the allegations beyond a reasonable doubt. What the public has been told bears little resemblance to the truth. We welcome the courtroom, where evidence is bound by rules, not sensational coverage. Kouri is a mother who wants to go home to her children. We are confident this jury will make that possible.”

8:28 a.m. People began lining up this morning before 5 a.m. Chad Mortensen was fourth in line and shared some photos with us. All 24 wristbands for the public were distributed by around 7:15 a.m. There are 24 seats for the public, 10 for the media.