A Utah mother who authored a youngsters’s e book about grief has been convicted of inflicting the very tragedy she claimed to assist her children overcome, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
On Monday, March 16, Kouri Richins was discovered responsible killing her husband, Eric Richins, in a calculated plot prosecutors mentioned was pushed by monetary desperation and a secret romance.
After a trial that spanned roughly three weeks, jurors reached a choice in only a few hours, convicting the 35-year-old on a number of counts, together with aggravated homicide, tried aggravated homicide, insurance coverage fraud and forgery.
Kouri confirmed little response as the decision was learn, showing subdued as she discovered her destiny.
Prosecutors argued she intentionally laced her husband’s Moscow Mule with fentanyl on March 4, 2022, killing the 39-year-old father-of-three inside their Utah dwelling.
The deadly incident wasn’t the primary time she allegedly tried to hurt him.
Jurors additionally discovered that Kouri tried to poison her husband weeks earlier, on Valentine’s Day, by giving him a sandwich tainted with fentanyl.
In line with testimony, the incident left Eric significantly unwell, inflicting a extreme response that included hives and lack of consciousness.
On the heart of the prosecution’s case was a monetary motive. Authorities mentioned Kouri was buried below hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in debt tied to her struggling actual property ventures.
Quite than stroll away from the wedding and lose entry to her husband’s wealth on account of a prenuptial settlement, prosecutors argued she selected a much more sinister route.
“She wished to go away Eric Richins however didn’t need to go away his cash,” prosecutor Brad Bloodworth informed jurors, in accordance with The New York Put up. “Their prenup meant if she left him, she would additionally go away most of his cash.”
They claimed she deliberate to entry his multimillion-dollar property after his demise whereas persevering with a relationship with Robert Josh Grossman, recognized in court docket as her secret lover.
Robert — a handyman and navy veteran — testified that Kouri had requested him if he’d ever killed anybody shortly after her husband’s sudden demise.
In a twist that shocked many observers, Kouri later revealed a youngsters’s e book, “Are You With Me?,” centered on dealing with grief following the lack of a father or mother.
The e book, launched a few yr after Eric’s demise, was framed as a manner to assist her younger sons course of their feelings.
Prosecutors pointed to the publication as a part of a broader effort to keep up appearances whereas concealing what they described as a calculated crime.
Kouri now faces a possible sentence of 25 years to life in jail.
She is scheduled to return to court docket for sentencing on Could 13, the place a choose will decide how a lot time she’s going to in the end serve.
Her protection workforce beforehand pushed for a mistrial over considerations in regards to the prosecution’s closing arguments, however the request was denied.