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. The most recent updates are at the top of this page.

4:45 p.m. Judge dismisses jurors. Tells them not to listen or watch anything about the case. The deputy will be back on the stand in the morning. Defense and prosecution discussing chain of custody over evidence. Will be discussed first thing in the morning. Tomorrow Dep. Nguyen will be called, along with the paramedic on scene, two other first responders and Ms. Gibson. Join me tonight for “Courtroom Insider” at 7 p.m. MST on the East Idaho News YouTube channel for a recap on everything that happened today.

4:40 p.m. Ramos stressing the importance of time and documenting times. He asks about when Kouri went to bed. Ramos asks if the defense can rest now and pick it up tomorrow. Judge calls attorneys to the bench. He has a look of annoyance on his face.

4:38 p.m. Ramos asks about the temperature in the home. It was 71 degrees. Ramos says, “Let’s talk about times. Everybody is looking at the clock right now, but I might need to come back to this witness tomorrow.”

4:32 p.m. Ramos asks Nguyen if he searched for gummies. He says he did not as he was not in charge of searching for medications. It was another deputy’s job. Ramos says they will ask the other deputy when he’s called to testify. Ramos asks Nguyen if he agrees the scene is a traumatic scene. “There is such a thing as secondary trauma, correct?” Nguyen says yes. Ramos asks to give everyone some grace. He then asks where Nguyen found out about the gummies. Nguyen found out about them from Kouri. Ramos asks Nguyen if he asked Kouri about where the gummies were. He did not.

4:28 p.m. Ramos asks if a photo was taken of the hydrocodone bottle or if it was taken into evidence. Nguyen did not do it. Ramos asks if anybody did it. Nguyen doesn’t recall. Ramos asks about the celebratory drink and if he knew that Kouri’s mom was there. Nguyen says he didn’t know. Ramos says, “Really?” Nguyen repeats that he didn’t know that Lisa was at the house the night before.

4:26 p.m. Ramos asks if Nguyen went to the kitchen or looked in the scene. He did not. Ramos asks if Nguyen told another investigator to go to the kitchen or look in the sink. He did not. “When somebody loses their life, it’s important, right?” Ramos asks. Nguyen says, “Yes.”

4:24 p.m. Ramos asking about Nguyen’s process in gathering information and documenting the scene.

4:20 p.m. Nguyen says the video would upload once he parked his car at the sheriff’s office. Ramos asks Nguyen where he went in the house. Just the living room. Ramos asks Nguyen if he has worked with the EMS paramedics in the past. He has worked with one.

4:16 p.m. Ramos asks what type of software Nguyen’s body camera uses. It’s called Watchguard. Ramos asks if the video is automatically uploaded. It is once he gets back to the sheriff’s department. Ramos asks how many times Nguyen has worn the body camera. “A lot.” Five – more. 20 – more. 100 – more. Thousands – possibly. Ramos says that in those thousands, he’s uploaded the body camera, correct? Nguyen says the camera system has since changed and they have a different process now. Nguyen recalls the video would upload via secure wifi at the office.

4:12 p.m. Ramos asks if Nguyen was there when Eric’s body was removed. He was not. Ramos asked Nguyen what time he left. The deputy says the report doesn’t have an exact time but he left after other deputies arrived.

4:10 p.m. Ramos asks Nguyen about when he arrived at the house and asks if he turned off his body camera at one point. He doesn’t recall. Ramos asks that if he had turned off his camera, when would he have done that? Nguyen says when the call was over. Ramos says if Nguyen has turned it off, he would have indicated that in his report, correct? Nguyen says yes.

4:04 p.m. Nguyen was responsible for the crime scene log and death checklist at the scene. He was looking for anything that might explain Eric Richin’s death. Prosecutor asks about Kouri Richins volunteering information about THC gummies. Nguyen says he did not see any THC gummies in the home. He did not see any illicit drugs or drug paraphernalia in the home either. Prosecution has no further questions. Defense attorney Alex Ramos will now cross examine.

4:01 p.m. Body camera is over. Courtroom camera shows Kouri, who is staring at the screen and doesn’t have much of a reaction. Prosecutor moves to admit still shots or photos from the body camera along with a police voluntary statement from Kouri.

3:57 p.m. Nguyen asks if any animals sleep with Eric. Kouri says he sleeps with a dog, but he wasn’t in there. Kouri asks about Eric’s dad and said, “I can’t…I don’t….” Katie says she will do it and her sister is almost there. Nguyen asks Katie to explain the process to the family – they can’t pass the threshold in the home while investigators are in the bedroom.

3:56 p.m. Body camera continues to play. Katie and Kouri are talking, crying. Kouri talks about how cold her husband was. “He was just so cold.”

3:52 p.m. Katie says, “I lost my brother. We’re going to get through this somehow. For those boys. We have for these boys. Okay? It doesn’t seem real.” Kouri responds, “No, it doesn’t.” Kouri says she can’t talk to Eric’s dad. Katie asks if they need to do anything. Ngyuen says they are following some protocols and the detective and medical examiner are on the way.

3:48 p.m. Katie has arrived and is screaming, “What happened? What happened? Where’s my brother? Can I see my brother?” Deputies ask Kouri if she can move her boys upstairs. Katie is on the front porch with the cops. She says she is Eric’s power of attorney. She is shaking and talking with the police. She tells her husband to go upstairs with Eric’s boys and their kids. Katie is breathing very deeply and falls to the floor. Kouri comes over to hug her. “Oh my god, I’ve got to breathe. I have to breathe.” She asks Kouri what happened. Kouri says Eric’s body was cold as they hug each other.

3:45 p.m. Kouri’s mother has arrived and Kouri is saying, “Oh my God. Oh my God.” Her mom talks about not knowing what the phone number was when she got the call from Kouri on the deputy’s phone. Lisa, her mom, tells the deputy that Eric had allergy shots yesterday. Kouri is now pacing the floor.

3:43 p.m. “My spouse is active. He didn’t just die in his sleep. This is insane,” Kouri says. She says he was not suicidal and had not been seen by a doctor within the last 30 days.

3:40 p.m. Investigators talking about the bottle of oxycodone from 2016 that they found in the bedroom. Eric has been pronounced dead and a paramedic comments that he was pretty young. Nguyen goes back into the living room to talk with Kouri. He asks if Eric has ever been in the military or uses tobacco. She says no. Nguyen asks if he was on the bed when she discovered him. She says yes. “I just thought he was cold because it was cold in there.”

3:37 p.m. Kouri is on the phone crying as Nguyen tells another deputy what Kouri told him. Judge asks for the video to be paused. Says he needs to fix something. Audio is very low on the video.

3:34 p.m. Richins says Eric sometimes takes a THC gummy before bed. Deputy asks who is the primary care doctor for Eric. Eric had a physical six months ago, Kouri says. She says she needs to call his dad. Deputy tells another deputy that his family members are going to be coming over, and there are two kids who are awake at the door to the left.

3:31 p.m. Deputy asks if Eric has any medical problems. She says he had Lyme disease and got an allergy shot the previous day. Deputy asks what time she discovered her husband. She says around 3. He asks if she immediately called 911. She says as soon as he turned over, he was cold so she put a blanket on him. She says he felt “so heavy.” Kouri says they just got over COVID.

3:27 p.m. A deputy is now chatting with Kouri. She says they were just fine. They had a drink to celebrate at 9 and went to bed at 9:30. Kouri says after she lay down her kids, she went to her bed and Eric was on his back. She’s crying. Deputy asks where her kids are. She says one is asleep and the others are at their door. Kouri asks if she can call her mom. She calls on the deputy’s phone. “Mom? Mom? Mom?” She asks her mom to come to her house because something is wrong with Eric and he isn’t breathing. Lisa Darden, Lisa’s mom, says she’s on her way.

3:25 p.m. The video is playing. This is from when officers arrived and Eric was dead. We hear someone asking Kouri what medicine he takes. She’s crying and says she doesn’t know. Part of the video is blurred where Eric is on the floor of the bedroom. Paramedics are working on him.

3:20 p.m. Prosecutor asks to admit body camera footage transcript from the night Nguyen went to the home. Judge allows it. Prosecutor wants to admit the actual body camera footage. There is a blurred spot. We now see the footage.

3:17 p.m. Next witness is Patrol Deputy Vincent Nguyen with the Summit County Sheriff’s Office. Prosecutor asks about his body camera. It’s always on and then it starts recording when he activates it or his lights turn on in the vehicle. He was working the night of March 4. Prosecutor shows the Richins’ home and Nguyen arrived at the home around 3:40 a.m. A sergeant, another deputy and fire personnel were there when Nguyen arrived. So was Kouri and her kids.

3:15 p.m. Prosecutor has nothing further. Lewis wants to ask one follow-up question. She says that any time the PI found something of interest, he would call the sheriff’s office and tell them to get a warrant. Benson believes that’s true. No further questions.

3:13 p.m. Defense has no further questions. Prosecutor has follow-up questions. He asks Benson if he has a distinct recollection of seeing the body being wheeled out. Benson says he does. Benson is asked about the private investigator and says if he ever found anything of interest, he would immediately call the sheriff’s office.

3:08 p.m. Lewis asks about the morning Eric died and when Benson went over the house. Lewis asks Benson if he has ever seen Kouri grieving immediately after losing someone close to her in her life. Benson had not. Lewis asks about the playroom and Benson going upstairs with the kids. Lewis asks what was visible for the kids to see of Eric being wheeled out. He was covered with a sheet.

3:05 p.m. Lewis asks who has been in and out of the home in the last 60 days. Benson says he has, the defense’s private detective and the sheriff’s deputies.

3:03 p.m. Lewis asks if the PI ever took anything out of the home. Benson believes he took some documents but isn’t sure. Lewis asks Benson if he stayed with the PI when they were in the home together. “For the most part, yes.” Lewis asks if the PI was ever allowed to wander around while Benson sat on the couch. Benson says he typically was with him at all times. Lewis asks if the PI was looking for things to help the prosecution. No, Benson says. He was doing his own investigation.

3:01 p.m. Lewis asks if the private investigator would find things and move them around the house. Benson says the PI documents everything he does so if items were moved around, he would document is. “He’s very specific about recording what he does.” Lewis asks if the PI ever video recorded. Benson isn’t sure. Cameras were installed in the home recording what was being done. Lewis asks if the video was turned over to the prosecutor. He says they overwrite every 60 days, and if he were subpoenaed, they would provide the video recordings.

3 p.m. Back from the break. Lewis asks if the private investigator was allowed in the home a number of times. He was. Benson says he was with him every single time he went in the home. He was. Lewis asks if Benson was with him with the private investigator moved things around the home. Benson was.

2:42 p.m. Sidebar over. Lewis shows an email to Benson, asks him to look at the date and then asks about Gabler (the private investigator) sending information to Summit County detectives about Kouri’s possible involvement in her husband’s death. Benson was included on the emails. He confirms. Judge says we will take an afternoon recess.

2:39 p.m. Lewis asks if the private investigator was supplying evidence to Summit County investigators and if Benson was receiving correspondence meant for investigators. Benson did. Prosecutors ask to approach the bench.

2:35 p.m. Lewis asks if other people have entered the home. Benson says anything taken out of the home was the children’s belongings, like clothes or a stuffed animal. Benson would go collect the items and take them to the boys. Lewis begins asking about Mr. Gabler, the private investigator. He was initially paid by Benson and then paid by the trust. Lewis asks if he was paid $100,000 out of the trust. He was. “The trust meant for the three boys?” Yes. “But that money was used to pay for an investigator?” Correct.

2:33 p.m. Lewis asks Benson if he has been present any time someone has entered the home. He says he has. Lewis asks about law enforcement entering the home and how many times they have searched the home between 2023 and now. Lewis asks if ten times seems reasonable. Benson says that seems reasonable. Lewis says law enforcement searched the home two weeks ago today. Benson says yes. She asks if police removed things from the home every time they checked the home. Benson says she would need to check their records.

2:30 p.m. Benson and his wife were supportive of Eric no matter what his choice was – whether he got divorced or not. Benson had the locks changed within a matter of hours and installed the cameras at the home with the help of a family member.

2:29 p.m. Eric was aware that Kouri was watching his emails and didn’t want Kouri to know he was considering a divorce, Benson says. That’s why Benson communicated with the attorney on behalf of Eric, according to Benson. It’s possible Eric also sent emails and documents to the divorce attorney without Benson’s knowledge.

2:25 p.m. Lewis asks about when Benson sold the home to Eric in 2012. Kouri and Eric both moved in and were married less than a year after moving in together, Benson confirms. Lewis asks if Kouri and Eric always lived in the home together since Eric bought it. Benson is unsure if they always lived there together, Lewis asks about Eric hiring a divorce attorney. Lewis asks if Benson went to the appointment with the attorney and Eric. He did not. Lewis asks if all correspondence between Eric and the attorney went through Benson. He says that is correct.

2:22 p.m. One of the boys remained level-headed; the other broke down and was extremely upset. Benson later heard Kouri talk about someone taking over running Eric’s company with another guy. Prosecutor has no further questions. Defense attorney Wendy Lewis will now cross-examine.

2:20 p.m. Benson went up to the bonus room with all the kids. They stayed up there for four hours. Benson heard the medical personnel leaving the home. His daughter was throwing up on the floor. Two of Eric’s sons went to the window and they saw their dad being wheeled out of the home.

2:16 p.m. Prosecutor directs Benson to look at certain financial documents that are in the exhibit. Benson recognizes them. Prosecutor asks about the night of March 4. Benson’s youngest daughter had the stomach flu. Katie received a phone call that Eric wasn’t breathing. After the call, they ran out of the house, left the doors open and drove over to Eric’s house. When they got to the house, Benson stayed outside with the daughters while Katie went inside. Benson ended up going into the home. His priority was to take care of the kids – his daughters and Kouri’s kids. Benson noticed some unusual hand movements from Kouri.

2:14 p.m. After learning about the line of credit, Eric and Benson started talking about divorce attorneys. Eric was very upset. Benson suggested Christina Miller as a divorce attorney. Benson became the intermediary between Eric and Miller. The prosecutor hands Benson the handwriting samples.

2:11 p.m. In November 2020, Katie got a phone call from Eric. She put it on speaker phone. Eric was angry and upset. He was on his way to the Benson’s home. Benson pulled up the Summit County recorder’s website where he pulled up the parcel information on the property. He found a $250,000 home equity line of credit taken out against his house. He told Eric.

2:09 p.m. Benson says he would meet the boys if they needed to get something from the home. If defense attorneys or investigators wanted access to the home, Benson says he would meet them there and give them access. The prosecutor asks if Benson ever saw a missionary journal in the house. Benson says Eric went on a mission.

2:07 p.m. Benson taped the doors so he could tell if they had been opened. He also set up notifications on his phone whenever there was movement in or outside the house. The sensors would even pick up bug movement. The home had a separate detached garage. Benson had to call law enforcement when the cameras captured entry to the home. Police showed up within minutes.

2:06 p.m. The Bensons lived in the home before Eric moved in. After May 8, following the death of Eric, Benson arranged for a locksmith to come in and change all the locks. He had a security company watch the house for two days and then got internet connected to the home so security cameras could be installed.

2:05 p.m. Benson is married to Katie and is employed by Salt Lake County as the real estate assets manager. He is also a realtor.

2:02 p.m. Nester asks if Kouri ever asked for any money from the trust. Katie says she did not. Nester says Katie is fully released as a witness and can remain in the courtroom. Next witness is Clint Benson.

2 p.m. Nester asks when Eric saw a divorce attorney. It was about a year and a half before he died. Nester asks who set the Richins up with a divorce attorney. Katie says her husband set them up with a divorce attorney. Nester asks to approach.

1:57 p.m. Nester asks about Eric revoking the power of attorney that Kouri previously had. Katie said she did have power of attorney at one point, but Eric did not know that she used it and withdrew money. Katie says Eric never signed the original power of attorney that gave it over to Kouri.

1:53 p.m. Bloodworth is done. Nester will now have some additional questions about what Katie told the police. Nester asks if this was all on March 21. Nester asks what a HELOC is. Nester says it means Home Equity Line of Credit. Katie says Kouri got a HELOC on the house without telling Eric. Nester asks Katie if she had power of attorney to be trustee if Eric died. Katie says she would have to ask her lawyer. She’s uncertain.

1:51 p.m. Sidebar over. Bloodworth asks if Katie provided information to detectives about friends they should interview. Katie says yes. Bloodworth asks if she gave information about the trust and who should have control of the house to the police. Katie did.

1:46 p.m. Bloodworth asks about the civil lawsuit and who filed it. Katie says Kouri filed it against Katie as the trustee. Kouri Richins was arrested on May 8, 2023. After she was arrested, the estate no longer employed their attorney, Katie says. Katie says Kouri signed Eric’s signature on a home equity loan of $250,000 against Eric’s knowledge. Eric also found a bunch of credit cards in his name that he was unaware of, Katie says. Nester objects to the questions and says the prosecution has “kicked the door open” to everything she wanted to ask in her questioning. Judge asks attorneys to approach.

1:43 p.m. Nester says she’s almost done. She asks Katie when she obtained her private investigator. It was within a couple of weeks of Eric’s death. Nester asks if Katie planned a celebration of life for Eric. Katie says they had the funeral, but she didn’t plan a celebration of life. Nestor asks about a celebration of life on April 1. Katie is unaware of one. Nester has no further questions. Bloodworth will now have re-direct questions.

1:40 p.m. Nester asks how long Kouri remained in the house and who kept up with the house. Katie says in January and February, she paid people to shovel all the snow and make repairs because it became the home of the trust. Nester asks Katie how many times she gave law enforcement access to the house. Katie isn’t sure. Nester asks if it was around 10 times. Katie says she put her husband over that portion of the investigation so she doesn’t know the exact amount. Nester asks if she gave their private investigator unfettered access to the house. Katie says no. Nester asks of they put cameras in the house. Katie says yes.

1:38 p.m. Nester asks about “multiple” conversations she had with investigators before Kouri was arrested. Prosecution objects and Nester says she will re-phrase her question. “Is it fair to say you have regular communication with investigators in the criminal case?” Katie says she has spoken with them after her brother died.

1:33 p.m. Nester asks about other emails and letters that Katie sent or may have sent. Katie is aware of some, she is not aware of others. Nester asks Katie is she remembers how she obtained Kouri’s bank records without her permission. Katie says the only bank records she has obtained is through the litigation of the civil lawsuit.

1:32 p.m. Nester asks Katie if she did an investigation into Kouri’s businesses. She said she personally did not investigate, but did get information and sent it to the investigators. She also forwarded a message that Kouri wanted her wedding ring back.

1:30 p.m. Nester gives Katie a timeline and asks her to review it. She asks Katie why she sent the timeline to investigators. Katie says it’s because she’s not an investigator and Eric’s death was suspicious.

1:26 p.m. Brooke left for a new job after Kouri was charged. Katie says she did not speak to the prosecutors before Kouri was charged. Nester clarifies if she means the actual prosecutors or the investigators. Katie means the actual prosecutors. Nester asks about an email Katie sent to the chief detective detailing everything suspicious Kouri had done over the past years. Katie doesn’t recall dates.

1:23 p.m. Nester asks if other experts were hired and paid to do a financial investigation. Katie says a woman named Brooke Harrington was hired by the estate and Katie paid her. Brooke was a financial accountant and was paid $14,625. Nester asks to admit an invoice showing the amount. Judge allows. Date is signed June 21, 2023.

1:21 p.m. Eric was buried, not cremated. Nester asks about the handwriting samples and if Katie coordinated an effort to gather his signature from a bunch of different places. Katie says yes, it was for the civil lawsuit. Nester asks if Katie sent the information to the prosecutor. She says she did not. Nester asks if she hired an expert to look into the handwriting samples. She did. The expert was paid by Katie’s law firm, she says.

1:18 p.m. Nester asks if Katie was part of the conversation if there would be an autopsy. Katie says yes – they all knew he would get an autopsy. Nester asks when the conversation was held. It was the day after Eric was removed from the house. Nester asks where Eric’s body was. Katie says it would have been at the medical examiner’s office or the mortuary. Nester asks if whether he was cremated or buried, the autopsy would have already happened. Katie doesn’t know the exact timeline.

1:15 p.m. Nester asks if Katie was aware that, as part of the pre-nuptial agreement, Kouri was surrendering any claim to Eric’s business. Katie says only if they divorced. If he died, Kouri would get the business. Nester asks if it would actually go to the trust with Katie as the trustee. Katie says it was a business trust. Nester asks if after Eric died, did Katie check his truck. Katie says she went to his truck with Kouri’s mom. Nester asks if Amy, Eric’s other sister, was in the truck. Katie doesn’t believe so.

1:12 p.m. Nester asks if once they removed Eric’s body, was Katie allowed to go anywhere in the house? Katie says yes. Nester asks if Katie saw the police searching the kitchen. She saw them searching the garbage. Nester asks if Katie heard the police interviewing Kouri. Katie did not. Nester asks if Eric shared that he used hydrocodone. Katie says yes. The pill bottle shown earlier was from 2016 because Eric had a procedure. Eric and Katie had several conversations about hydrocodone, and she set him up with an acupuncturist to help with pain. “He did not like to, but it was extreme he would” use hydrocodone.

1:09 p.m. Nester asks about Katie’s testimony that she only saw his brother use Advil. She asks if Katie is aware that Eric used other substances. Katie says after he died, she became aware that he used THC occasionally. Nester asks about her family being against drug use. Katie says their mom was not against marijuana use. Nester asks Katie if she knew her brother drank alcohol. Katie says he socially drank, but not in front of her. Nester asks if her brother spoke about his sex life and the fact he was taking testosterone. Katie says he did share about his sex life and she knew he was taking testosterone.

1:07 p.m. Nester asks about the Apple Watch and if Kouri had not swiped it, would her son be able to see everything on the Apple Watch. Katie isn’t sure – says not everything on the iPhone might not go to the Apple Watch. Nester asks if there might be a lot of reasons why a widow might not want to live in the home where her husband died. Katie says she could see some people wanting to stay and some people not wanting to stay.

1:05 p.m. Sidebar over. Nester asks why Katie told the officer about the financial issues between Kouri and Eric. “I had an overwhelming feeling that I should let someone know.” Nester asks why. Katie says she doesn’t know why – she just had an overwhelming feeling to tell someone. “Because you thought Kouri was behind it?” Katie responds, “I did not say that.” Nester asks if Katie told the officer about her being a trustee of the trust. Katie doesn’t recall.

12:59 p.m. Nester says, “Your memory was wrong.” Katie says, “To be fair, it was four years ago.” Nester replies that everything she is testifying about was four years ago. Nester asks about Katie speaking to an officer outside the home on the morning Eric died. Katie spoke with Officer Woody, a female officer. Nester asks Katie if she told the officer that she believed Kouri was involved in her brother’s death. Katie says no. Nester asks about Katie mentioning Kouri taking money from her brother to the officer. Katie did. Judge asks for a quick sidebar with counsel.

12:57 p.m. Jury is back in the courtroom. Nester picks up by asking Katie about her testimony that Kouri was wearing pajamas and had her hair tied up. Katie says that’s right. Nester asks to admit some police body camera footage. We see the footage. Kouri bends down to hug Katie in the video.

12:53 p.m. Judge will allow Katie Richins-Benson to be a family victim representative so she can stay in the courtroom during the trial. Judge says the defense never listed her as a witness and it’s likely Katie already knows all the evidence in the case. Says there is likely no prejudice by allowing her to remain in the courtroom.

12:49 p.m. We are back from lunch. Bloodworth argues that they did not know the defense planned to call Katie as a witness. The state called her early so she could be in the courtroom and watch the trial. Prosecution wants to designate Katie as a family representative. Defense objects. Judge says law allows to have more than one representative. Nester continues to object and says it will mess up her cross-examination. Judge says she can cross. Nester says if she is allows to sit through the trial, it affect the defense’s sixth amendment right.

12:09 p.m. Lunch break now until 12:40 p.m.

12:08 p.m. Before the exhibit is shown, judge wants to make sure the faces of the children are blurred. The court staff is working on some tech issues.

12:02 p.m. Nester continues questioning. She asks about the day Eric died and how Kouri was dressed in pajamas. “Her hair was neatly done, that’s what you recall?” Nester says. Katie says that’s correct. Nester asks to play a clip just for the witness and counsel. Bloodworth asks to approach.

11:59 a.m. Nester asks if the trust has paid for a private investigator. Prosecution objects. Judge sustains and says she is well outside the scope. Nester asks to approach the bench. Attorneys meeting at judge’s bench.

11:57 a.m. Nester asks if Kouri wanted to spend money from the trust, it would be Katie’s job to say, ‘Here is the money.’ Katie says that’s correct. If the house needed repair or mortgage payments, the trust could pay for that. Nester asks how much money Kouri asked for in the year after Eric died. Prosecution objects – beyond the scope. Judge sustains.

11:53 a.m. We see the document on the screen. Kouri was a beneficiary of the trust and so were the boys. Nester asked Katie what her role is as a trustee. She says it’s to administer the trust and carry about her brother’s wishes. The trust holds Eric’s assets. Nester asks Katie if she gets paid. Katie said Eric put in the trust that she could get paid for her time working on the trust, but Katie says has never taken a penny. Nester asks if Kouri wanted to buy a car with money from the trust, would Kouri need to ask Katie? Katie says there was a lot of litigation. Three weeks after Eric died, Kouri sued to put aside the trust so Katie would need to talk with her attorneys.

11:51 a.m. The document is Eric Richins’ living trust. It makes Katie the trustee if Eric dies. Defense asks to admit it.

11:49 a.m. Katie is back on the stand and jury is in the courtroom. Nester introduces herself and asks about Katie being the trustee of a trust Eric created. Nester gives her a document and asks if she recognizes it. Katie thumbs through it.

11:46 a.m. The judge says he is using first names because there are a lot of Richins involved in the trial, not to show any disrespect. Same here. First names are earlier to follow when there are multiple people with the same last name.

11:43 a.m. Katie will go back on the stand now and Nester’s questions will remain within the scope of what the prosecution asked in direct. At lunch, the prosecution will speak with the family. Nester is asking judge if she can ask questions about the trust and if the prosecution has opened the door.

11:41 a.m. Nester says Katie could not stay in the courtroom if she can’t get all of her questioning underway now. State says she and Amy are representatives of the family. Judge says they only get one family representative. If state allows Nester to have direct questioning now, Katie can remain in the courtroom. If not, she will be excluded from the trial until her defense direct questioning is done.

11:39 a.m. Prosecution says the state wants to present its case in the order that will provide a proper narrative without interruption. “Sometimes the proper way to present a case is not the most efficient way to present a case,” Bloodworth says. He says all their witnesses are local and maybe they could make an exception if there are some witnesses from out of town. He wants cross to remain within the scope of direct and if the defense needs to recall a witness, they can. The judge says this will be taken on a witness-by-witness basis.

11:35 a.m. Judge wants to discuss witnesses that are on both the defense and prosecution lists. Judge asks Katie to step outside. Nester says there are multiple witnesses on both lists. She says if defense has to recall each witness during their portion of the trial, the length of the trial will be spread out. Judge says it will be the same amount of time and asks Nester to explain how it will extend the length of the trial. Nester says it will be ridiculous to recall them. Nester is asking if the scope of her questions can be extended so the witnesses don’t have to be recalled.

11:35 a.m. Judge dismisses the jury so he can discuss a plan about what to do about the lunch hour.

11:33 a.m. Bloodworth is done with his questions. Nester says her cross will be lengthy. Attorneys approach the bench.

11:29 a.m. Katie explains different receipts, tax documents and handwriting samples that are in the binder.

11:28 a.m. Bloodworth gives Katie a binder of handwriting samples from when he signed his will, documents, etc. We don’t see it, but Katie thumbs through the exhibit.

11:24 a.m. Kouri had a plan for how to run Eric’s stone masonry business. She was going to hire TJ, Eric’s friend, to run Eric’s portion of the business for her. This was all relayed to Katie on the day Eric died. A family meeting was held on March 5, the day after Eric died. Eric wanted to be buried, not cremated. During the family meeting, they talked about the funeral. Eric would be buried by his mom. They discussed who would speak and be pallbearers. At the end of the meeting, Lisa, Kouri’s mom, said, “When are we going to talk about Eric wanting to be cremated?” Kouri appeared to be shocked, but then said, “He told me he didn’t want any bugs crawling on him when he was dead. It creeped him out.” Katie asked why they just planned an entire funeral based on a casket and now they’re just bringing up cremation. Eugene started to become upset because he knew his son wanted to be buried, Katie says.

11:22 a.m. Kouri’s son said he wanted his dad’s Apple watch. Kouri got the watch, deleted everything on it and gave it to her son, Katie says. Kouri told Katie she was going to sell their house. Katie says she could not function or figure out what was for dinner and “she was planning on selling the house that he had just been wheeled out on and closing on a multi-million dollar mansion.” When Eric died, the house was in a trust and Eric was the trustee. When he died, Katie became the trustee.

11:20 a.m. While Kouri was consoling her son, Breanne Sorensen, Ronny’s fiancée (Kouri’s brother), came into the room, and Bre started talking about the closing of the Midway mansion, Katie recalls. Defense objects. Judge sustains. Bloodworth asks how Kouri reacted to what Bre said. She was very business-like and telling Bre exactly what to do. “I was dumbfounded. I looked at Kouri and said, ‘You can’t tell me you’re going to close on the Midway mansion when my brother just died.’ She responded, ‘Yeah, the money went through. My brother has nothing to do with it. I’m going to.'”

11:17 a.m. The kids were called in and Kouri said that they dad would not be coming back. He was gone. After she told the kids, one of the sons became upset. Katie went to check on him multiple times. He was on his bed with his covers pulled up and Katie sat on the bed to try and console him. He wanted his mom. Katie told Kouri that she should go in and console him. She asked several times. Finally she said, “Kouri, I’m not his mom. I’m not his dad. He’s very upset. I can not console him. Can you please come in and talk with him.” Kouri came in the room and the son jumped out of bed and ran to each other. They hung on to each other and sat on the floor. Katie sat next to them.

11:15 a.m. Katie repeatedly asked Kouri when they could tell the boys that their father had died. Katie says they wheeled her brother’s body out. Katie and her husband tried to block the boys from seeing it, but they saw it. The boys were upset. Katie told Kouri that the boys saw it, and they were upset. Kouri and Lisa, her mom, said, “I guess we better tell them.” Kouri then asked for the boys to be brought in.

11:12 a.m. When they arrived at Eric’s house, the police and emergency responders were on scene. Katie went to find Eric’s boys. She took them to a room with toys so they could be away from all the first responders. Katie’s husband stayed with the boys. Bloodworth asks Katie if she observed Kouri Richins that morning. She remembers seeing Kouri shaking her head at her, “and I knew right then my brother was gone. I fell to the floor. I observed she was not how she normally was when we would go on overnights. She was very well put-together. She had a matching pajama outfit on. Her hair was done up. She wasn’t crying like I was. She just stood there and shook her head no at me.”

11:08 a.m. State admits the premarital agreement between Kouri and Eric. Katie had seen it. She’s asked about the morning Eric died. She says her dad called her. “He was screaming and crying and said, ‘Eric’s not breathing! Eric’s not breathing!'” Katie’s daughter was sick and had thrown up. Her daughter was in Katie’s bed, and her husband had gone to check in the other bedroom. Katie saw her phone ringing and said, “Dad, how did you know I was up with my sick little girl?” That’s when he told Katie that Eric was not breathing. “I screamed. I fell to the floor. My husband heard me and came running in. My husband thought it was my daughter since she had just thrown up. He ran over to her and said, ‘She’s OK.’ I said, ‘No, it’s Eric.'” They grabbed their kids and went running out of the house. They drove to Eric’s house.

11:06 a.m. Katie once owned the home that Eric and Kouri lived in. She sold it to them. Bloodworth asks to admit a photo of the home as evidence. Judge allows it. We see the photo. Katie sold it to Eric in the latter part of 2012. There are seven homes in the cul-de-sac where Eric lived.

11:04 a.m. Bloodworth asks Katie if she ever saw her brother injured. Katie recalls Eric getting hit by a softball and calling her at 1 a.m. He was fine, but just wanted to tell her. She says if his mental or physical well-being was not good, he would call her. The only thing Katie ever saw Eric use was Advil. Eric’s mom was a drug and alcohol counselor and ingrained in the kids about the dangers of drugs and alcohol. Eric and Katie had been planning to take their kids to Disneyland. They were also planning programs for Eric’s son to do computer programming.

11:02 a.m. Eric taught his kids how to work. He loved the outdoors and his family, Katie says. “There was not a waking moment that my brother did not focus on his kids,” she says. Eric had money going into an account for his kids each month so they could pay for college and maybe a down payment for a house. Katie talks about going horseback riding with Eric’s sons, and Eric would be in an ATV by the side.

11 a.m. Bloodworth asks about Eric’s personality. Katie begins to say, “Eric was one of the most likable people you’ve ever met,” and begins to cry. She says he loved everyone. It did not matter who you were or where you came from. Everyone thought they were his best friend. “That’s the way Eric made you feel. He was upbeat. He was positive. He would give a stranger on the side of the road his jacket. That’s the type of person Eric was.” Katie says Eric would do anything for his boys. “He was the best dad you would ever see. If there were kids involved, he was there.”

10:58 a.m. Katie is sworn in. Bloodworth asks Katie to address the jury. He asks if she knew Eric Richins. They were brother and sister. They were two years apart “so we were inseparable.” “We did everything together, we went to school together. We have a family ranch that’s been passed down for generations. We worked on the ranch together. We fished, we hiked, we did everything together,” she says.

10:56 a.m. Prosecution has no further questions. Defense attorney Kathyn Nester says she is very sorry for his loss and has no questions for him. Eugene Richins is dismissed. Katie Richins-Benson is the next witness.

10:54 a.m. Eugene was with his wife when she died from lung fungus. He says Eric did not suffer from any of the symptoms that his wife had. Bloodworth gives Eugene an exhibit containing handwriting samples.

10:52 a.m. Sometime between Eric’s funeral and the medical examiner’s ruling, Kouri called Eugene and said she had just spoken to the medical examiner. She said they determined Eric died of the same thing Linda (Eric’s mom) did and COVID. Linda died from fungus in her lungs, Eugene says. Katie, Eugene’s daughter, called the M.E., and they told Katie that Kouri had never called and the results from Eric’s death had not been released. Defense objects. Judge allows the statement in not for the truth of the matter.

10:50 a.m. Eugene rushed to Eric’s house around 4-4:30 a.m. Katie, Eugene’s daughter, was there. So was Kouri. First responders were also there, and so was Kouri’s mom. The three boys were also there and two other granddaughters. Eugene stayed until 10-10:30 a.m. Bloodworth asks what Kouri said to him that morning. Eugene doesn’t recall her saying much, if anything, to him.

10:47 a.m. Bloodworth asks about Eric’s sons. Eugene says, “He was their coach, their father and their very best friend.” Eric constantly brought his sons to Eugene’s ranch. The oldest one loves to rope, and the other boys love to ride four-wheelers. “Eric was an excellent father,” Eugene says. Eugene and Eric were planning to buy a cabin together. Kouri called Eugene on March 4, 2022, and told Eugene that Eric was not breathing.

10:46 a.m. Eric helped his dad on his cattle ranch. He loved to be outdoors and, as adults, they saw each other 1-3 times a week. They spoke every day on the phone. They went to ball games together, spent time on the ranch and saw each other “all over the place.” Eric had a fun-loving, likable personality. “He loved people, and people loved him.”

10:44 a.m. Bloodworth shows photo of Eric Richins. Eugene says Eric was 39 when he died. Bloodworth asks Eugene to point out Kouri Richins. Linda Carter Richins is Eric’s mom’s name. Eugene says he was involved with Eric as a child. “We did everything together as a family. Education was extremely important for us as a family as was a strong work ethic, as was religion. Those were my top priorities as to how we raised our children,” Eugene says.

10:41 a.m. Jury is back in. The judge reads the correct swearing-in verbiage. First witness is Eugene Richins – Eric’s dad.

10:39 a.m. Court is back in session. Jurors will be brought in. Judge will swear them in again with the proper wording, and then state will call its first witness.

10:21 a.m. There is some question over the oath the judge read to the jury. Apparently there was a mistake. They will be re-sworn in after the break. Court is in recess until 10:35 a.m.

10:19 a.m. Judge sends jury out for morning recess. Bloodworth says they need some clarification for the exclusionary rule. Nester names two family members – DJ and Ronnie – who cannot stay for the trial. Judge says they can not listen to the testimony or talk to anyone about it. “You are ordered not to be exposed to the testimony of this case.” Rest of the family can come back in.

10:17 a.m. Nester says the state must prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt, and the jury must be firmly convinced. “We’re asking you to be courageous, to pay attention, to stand strong and to hold the government to that burden that’s on their table. At the end of this case, you will see Kouri Richins is innocent. Find her not guilty on all charges.” Nester is done.

10:14 a.m. Nester says the defense and prosecution will agree on a lot of facts during the trial. But there will be disputes about what the facts mean. Nester says at the end of the trial, the burden of proof lies with the prosecution. “She is innocent right now, and you have to accept that to do your job.”

10:13 a.m. Nester talking about the life insurance policies. Kouri signed a $100,000 life insurance policy on Eric when she got a flyer in the mail. “Eric made that in two months. I’m telling you right now, wives everywhere sign their husbands’ names on a lot of things.”

10:10 a.m. Nester says Lauber never mentioned fentanyl during her original story to police, but she changed her testimony when the police said, “We caught you with drugs and with guns and if you don’t say what we want you to say, you’re going to jail for a really long time. We’re going to give you a free ticket if you say Kouri says fentanyl, and she changes her story.”

10:08 a.m. Sidebar is over. Nester apologizes and says, “That’s going to happen a lot over the next five weeks so get ready.” She says prescriptions for Oxycodone are around 10 mg per pill. If you want stronger Oxycodone up to 30 mg, you need a special prescription from a doctor or you can get it on the streets. Nester says back in 2022, the dealer where Lauber, the house cleaner, got his pills only sold Oxycodone, not fentanyl.

10:06 a.m. Nester says Eric asked Kouri to buy him pain pills. Prosecutor asks judge if they can approach. Attorneys congregate at judge’s bench.

10:04 a.m. Nester says Eric suffered from pain, knee and back pain related to his work as a stonemason. He loved being outdoors – skiing, hunting, snowmobiles. He had been diagnosed with Lyme disease. “This is a man’s man. He’s a macho guy. He didn’t want to show weakness. He didn’t want people to know he was suffering. He didn’t share that with a lot of people.” Nester says Eric would smuggle gummies outside of the United States. “That’s how much he needed it.”

10:02 a.m. Nester says the PI took Eric’s computer after he died. Nester says Eric’s family hired experts and paid them all a bunch of money. They will be witnesses to testify against Kouri. Nester says Eric’s family had constant communication with the prosecutor. “You’re not going to hear a single one of Eric’s family, Kouri’s investors, her friends, her broker, her accountant, her lawyer, her marriage counselor – not one of those people is ever going to be able to tell you what happened in those six hours.”

10 a.m. Nester says Eric had an allergic reaction to a sandwich on Valentine’s Day, took an EPIPen, and then drove his kids to soccer. “They’re asking you to believe that she secretly put narcotics in her husband’s food right before he’s going to drive the three things that matter the most to her in the world.”

9:59 a.m. Nester says the prosecution is going to assassinate Kouri’s character 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 for $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 fentanyl. 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 next to her sonm, 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 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 Eric did not kill himself. Evidence will prove Kouri had means, motive and opportunity to murder Eric Richins, he said. “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 similar 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’ house cleaner. Kouri knew Lauber could get drugs, according to Bloodworth. Three days before Eric’s death, Bloodworth says Lauber got pills for Kouri. On Valentine’s Day, Kouri bought 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 bought pills from the same street dealer near a Maverik in Draper, Utah. 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 Josh 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 more than 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, she 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 while. 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 that may be said by a witness the state plans to call.

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 Deputy 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.